


Curiosity Killed the Cat

by Huffledork



Series: HuffleVerse Ego Stories [2]
Category: Jacksepticeye Power Hour (Web Series), Who Killed Markiplier? (Web Series), natewantstobattle
Genre: Angst, Dark Magic, Markiplier Characters (minorly), Mind Control, Murder, Nathan Sharp Egos (minorly), Superheroes, Violence, Whump, black magic, posession
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-05
Updated: 2021-01-05
Packaged: 2021-03-15 11:28:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 9
Words: 23,517
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28562787
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Huffledork/pseuds/Huffledork
Summary: Life hasn't gotten easier for Marvin after getting him and his friends out of Phantom's clutches. Now, he's paying a debt to Anti. A debt that has him putting his creator into a deep sleep. But, Marvin doesn't know how and he's forced to use powers he doesn't know to appease the Glitch.So- what happens when a foreign dark magic starts to warp Marvin to the very core? What will he become? Will he succeed in his new goal of taking down Anti once and for all? Or... will Curiosity really kill the Cat, for good?
Series: HuffleVerse Ego Stories [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2092623
Comments: 2
Kudos: 14





	1. Laughter in the Dark

Jackieboy Man rushes through the streets of Brighton with great speed, a steely look of determination on his face. He glances over at the watch on his wrist, a map of the city shining on the screen with a red pinprick blinking somewhere uptown. Jackie grits his teeth and pushes to run faster.

A shadow flew over his head and Jackie barely had any time to stop before Marvin floats down next to him and starts to match his speed as the two begin to run in tandem.

“You sure got here fast,” Jackie muttered, “I thought you couldn’t teleport to a moving target.”

Marvin puffed out a slight laugh and gave Jackie a cheeky grin, “I didn’t use teleportation. Schneep and Me found your tracking devices and put one on your suits when you weren’t looking.”

Jackie looks up at the sky in exasperation and gives out a strained sigh, “Okay.. clever.”

“What’re we dealing with Jackieboy?” Marvin asked, a smirk still lingering on his lips.

The hero reached out his arm so Marvin could look at his wristwatch, “More hitmen being dispatched into the city. The police set up a deep web guinea pig so we could find at least one and stop him. Take him into custody and question him and all that.” 

The cat masked magician grins, his eyes shining bright with power, “Sounds exciting!”

Jackie rolls his eyes but gives his best friend a smile, “That enthusiasm better be useful to us in a fight, kit kat.”

Marvin starts to laugh but as that nickname comes tumbling out of Jackie’s mouth, a chill runs through his whole body. He turns to look at Jackie and instead he’s met with neon glowing green eyes. Marvin gasps and skids to a halt.

Terrifying laughter fills the alleyway as Marvin looks around to see Jackie is nowhere near. Marvin’s breathing starts to pick up as his whole body fills with panic. He tries to call out to his friend only for a clawed hand to reach around his throat from behind and choke him.

“Ẁ͙̖̹͒͝ḙ̡̞͊̉̂l̢͕͉̇͘̕ļ͙̙͒̏͛ ̙̦͓̅͌͆w̧̦͉̐͊̌e̡̱̟͑̐͝l̡̲̪̈́͂̓l̨͔͔̓̋͠ ̨̛͎͉̇̏l̢̫̻̑̄͝i͕̣̓̆͝ͅt̨̩̗̓̀̕t̹̣̝͑̏̐ḽ̮̥̀͛̇e̹̞͑͋̕ͅ ̞͚̏̈́͝ͅk̦̘͖̄̓̕i̙͓͍̐̈t̟̮̲͐̆̊t͈̮̞̐̿͆e̹̻̣͂̃͠n̮͍̼̉͑͝,̣͉̞̄̂̊ ̙̼͍̃͋̑i̡͙̘͆̀͝ţ̰͙̓̓̋'͙̞̙͌̃ṡ̢̳͉͑͝ ̗͔̻́͒̈́g̛͙̹̯͊̕ọ̥̪̌̿͛o̢͎̯̒̌̈́d͎̩̪̐͆̕ ̼̜̩̈́̅̾ț͎̜̔͂͘ǫ̣̖̋͐ ̬̱͍͛͆͠ŝ̠̟̥̒͊ȩ͉͍̾͐̑ĕ̡͉̼̄͠ ̛̳̗̺̍̚y͇̘͒̓͜͠ö̡̪̱́͛̋ụ̘͕̑͊̍ ͚̼̦̎̂a̼̯̤͊̅͠g̫̩̹͑̽̽a̧̟͚̓͆̄i̮͔̼͐͘ǹ͓̺̿̐ͅ.͕̪͖͋̂̉ ̻͔͕͌̃̍D͉̳̦͊̒̽i͕̮͚͒̔͘ḍ̭̣̍̃̔ ̟̼̺́̾͑y̟̗̭͑̚͘o̖̻̪̓͐̋u͉̱͍̔̒̈ ͙͍̤̂́͊m͙͇̫͌͊i̡̪͆̑̚͜s̺͔̿͐̑ͅs̘̪̳̈́͂͝ ̥͙̺̽̽͑m̩̗̌͝͠ͅe͙̱̞̓͆̕?͍̬̼̒͐"̲̻̫̈́̏̆ ͇̖̜̊̈́͠The glitch whispers in Marvin’s ear. His voice feels like sharp burrs being shoved in his eardrums. Marvin tries to push him away but that only has Anti grip harder onto him.

“̺̰͉͊̽̀Y̪͈͕̊̅̽o̦͉͙͊̃u͍͉͋͌̐ͅ'̺̜̪͊̚͝r͈̫̪ȅ̱͉̺͒͠ ̯̜͔͗͛̑n̞̹͓̑̉͊o̢̗̳̎̽͘t͉͎̼͊̌̈́ ̬̼̎͋̉ͅẻ̠͚̤̕͝s̖͖̘͗͗̂c̩̭̼̓̓̔a̱͔̦̾̇̈p̛̼͙͉̎̓ḯ̫̬̩̐͛ṉ̼̥͛̈́͋g̹̹̩͋͊̈́ ͉̯͆͊̿͜m̩͓̥͐̎̋e̯̭̥͆̉͝ ̙̣͎̃̂̆a͖̩̺͂̀n̢̼̻̑̕͝ỵ̻̯͊͛̓ ̧̛͈̗̏͊t̨̬̼̋͋̒ỉ̧̧̝̾m̯͍̖̽̓̕ě͎̹̰͗̔ ̻̙̟̍̉͌s̨̠̀̑͜͠o̼̹̠̐̅͘o͙͚̬̍̓͠ṅ̻̙̩̆̎,̜͔͕̒͂͠ ̛͚̳̫̍̒ķ̞̅̈́͑͜i̝̼͎̍͋t̝̻̿̇̒͜ ͚̯̜͋͋̏k͖̘͓͐̑̉a̬̯̖͌̈́̆ṱ̖̲̓͒͒.̧̡̬̊̎̕"̛͙͎͉͌̈ ̨̘̉͆͒ Anti hisses. Marvin hears himself growl and his hands flair up with magic and he slams his burning hands backward, grabbing onto Anti’s legs. The glitch screams as Marvin’s magic scorches through his torn jeans and Anti tears his hands away from Marvin. The magician gasps, holding a hand against his throat. His scar from his last encounter with Anti burns cold.

He lifts up his hands, flaring out magic to attack the glitch again but in the dim yellow light of the streetlamp in front of him, he sees no sign of the demon. More laughter echoed around him as lights all around Marvin flicker and glitch. Anti’s form reappears and disappears through the spots of darkness and Marvin spins round and round trying to catch sight of him. Finally, he’s sick of playing Anti’s game so he yells out and lets a burst of magic rocket out of him, shattering every source of light in the vicinity. Anti’s laughter dies away and all Marvin can hear is his own labored breathing.

Footsteps echo in front of him and Marvin snaps his head up, blasting a green flame out into the darkness. But instead of the glitch walking out, Marvin sees a red jumpsuit and blue boots and his heart drops. The hero brushes his shoulder, letting the small green flame that lingers on his suit be patted out as he glares down at Marvin. Marvin shrinks backward on instinct.

“Where were you?” Jackie spits, anger burning in his eyes. Marvin has trouble finding his voice.

“I-i… A-Anti. Anti! He-”

“Anti isn’t here, Marvin! He’s never been here!” Jackie is shouting.

“But i-!” Marvin tries to cry back but he’s drowned out by Jackie’s louder voice.

“You always do this! Face things alone or put yourself in danger without thinking of the consequences!” Jackie steps up and grabs Marvin by his shirt collar, lifting the magician up into the air. Marvin cries out and tries to pry himself free, but Jackie was always so much stronger than him.

Jackie’s voice goes cold, “This is why you’re alone right now.”

Marvin’s entire body freezes, the summer night suddenly feeling like the middle of winter. He dares to stare back at the hero as he tilts his head to the side, a mannerism too similar to a certain glitch.

A slight dark giggle comes from Jackie and his eyes flash green, “It’s why you don’t have your friends to come s̨̹͍̓́̂a͕̺͕̐̒̐v̲̺͎̊͋̄e͓̞̖̅̏͘ ̭̠͔̓̐ÿ̭̹̰̽̅ỏ̮͈̠̄̓u̘͔̯͌͊͘.͎͈͔̋̚͝”̱͈̦̐̂̿

Marvin struggles, his eyes burning from unshed tears. “Let me go!” He chokes out, clawing at the hero’s arms, “Let me go!”

Jackie jerks Marvin so his face is in front of his own as he whispers sweetly, “T̡͔̣̉́̓ḭ͓̳͛̓͛m̳͕̼͐̆́ȇ̫̦̗̕ ̹̞̗̆̃͘t̖̺̱͋̅͌o̡̦̭̓̄ ̢̡̣́̀͝w̠͚͎͐̊͘a̢̟̒͆͜k̦̳̪͑̐͆ẹ͉͎̄̊̃ ̣̫̤̈̽̚ủ͍̥̘͒͗p̨̟̦̆̎̋,͉̹̱̋̄̀ ̯̖͙̍̅C̲̲̪̋͐͒ä̢̦͙̈́͘t̢̟̩͋͊͆

̢̖͔̀̇̚M̧͓̖͒̽a̝̻̗͐͌͘ṩ̢͚̈͊k̥̺̼̊̔͒.̩͖̪̆͒̕"̡̻̣͗̉ ̲̠̭̃̒͠

Marvin’s eyes fly open as his chest heaves, sucking in air hungrily. His whole body is tense and stiff yet slick with sweat from his sleep. The magician realizes he was sleeping up against the wall. He barely has any time to think on that before Anti’s face appears in front of him and grabs him by the hair, dragging him to his feet.

Marvin grits his teeth to not cry out as Anti drags him. His wrists ache from where green puppet-like strings wrap heavily around them, attaching him to the wall.

“Shake that sleep outta ya!” Anti barks, yanking harder on Marvin’s hair and using his other hand to yank Marvin’s strings. “W̢̧̠̊̈́͝e̡͚̟̊̈̽ ̧̟͈͐͑̈́g͚̱͂̑̚ͅo̱̬͔͋͝͝t̛̰͈̭͘͝ ̪̖̙̓̿͘w̻̘̫̃͌o̰̟͕͛̆̋r̳̗͇͊̀̽k̻͉̰̀͋̒ ̗͖̱̈́͌̽t̩̜͇̾͗ȍ̙̯̲͒̊ ̪͕̱͌̔̊d̡̨͚̎͆̿ö̰̩͉̽̅.̡̺͙̅̾̏"̘͎͉̈́͆̆ ̭͇͚̃̃͝


	2. Something Dark

Anti throws Marvin onto the ground and the magician flies across the floor, his head knocking into the metal frame of a bed across the room. Marvin has barely a second to breathe before Anti glitches over and grabs him and pulls him up by his shirt. Marvin chokes and weakly grabs at Anti’s arms as the glitch leans in and growls.

“You got some explaining to do, kitten whiskers,” He snarls, his eyes flashing green. Marvin tries to swallow as he chokes out, “I-i haven’t done… a-anything-!”

“Exactly!” Anti shouts, throwing down Marvin again. The magician hits his head against the metal on the bed and his vision goes black for a second. He quickly shakes it off, rubbing his head as Anti draws closer. A quiet mumble behind Marvin has his shoulders tensing and he looks behind him to see Jack shifting in his sleep, a look of pain furrowing his brow. The heart monitor next to the YouTuber spikes slightly as another quick exhalation escapes Jack’s mouth.

“Explain to me why he’s n̘̬̂͘ổ̧͖ẗ̛̪͔́ ͇̭̊̐a̙̱̐̀s̗̭̔͑ḷ̗̉̊ḙ͙̀̉e͔̞̓͘p̳̠̅̒,̨̡̈́̽ ͈̱̐̐k̞̭̓̾ị̪̎̿ṫ̩̻ ̮̝̉͛k̡̗̍͊â̛̘̤ţ̿̔͜!̳̥̀͝"̬͓̋͌ The glitch snarls. Marvin scrambles away from both Jack and Anti as he tries to speak.

“I-i I dunno!” Marvin wheezes, “I-i’m trying the strongest m-magic I can!” A collection of glitches strikes Marvin in the face and his head snaps to the side, throwing his face into the wall. Marvin massages his face with a groan and gasps as he pulls his hand away to reveal blood. A knife sinks itself into the wall behind Marvin, snapping the magician’s attention back to the angry glitch.

“You need to try fucking harder!” Anti screams. “I can’t have him waking up!” The demon’s eyes seem to display a quiet desperation that doesn’t match his enraged expression. Marvin swallows and tries to stagger to his feet, blood dripping from his nose onto the tiles beneath him.

“I’m… doing…what I can…” Marvin rasps, holding his side as it burns from being tossed around. “I don’t know…what you want me to do…”

Marvin’s wrists fly up as Anti yanks on the green strings attached to the magician, causing the man to be dragged across the floor, his face scraping painfully against the tiles. Anti’s scruffed up sneaker cracks against Marvin’s skull as the glitch leans down to his level.

“I want you to do s̢̤̋͠ö̧̙́̄m̪̱̔̎ę͍̄͝t̙͓͒͑h̬͙͒̽i̛͖͍̇n̡̻͛̏g̡̜͑̃!͉̼͋̔"̨̹̈́͋ He barks darkly, digging his heel into Marvin’s head. “Or do I need to kill those pathetic friends of yours to get you working?”

Marvin coughs and looks up at the glitch. But his expression seems almost apathetic to Anti’s threat. Anti bares his fangs and reaches down to grab Marvin’s hair and he yanks it up roughly. Marvin cries out, pinpricks of tears clouding the corner of his vision.

“Or do I need to make you d̥̺̏̚i̧̱͗̕s͉̝̀̽a̹̫̔̆p̤̓̚͜p͙͖̊͝e͖̼̽̈́a͎͉͊̃r̰̖͑͘ ͇͐́?̨̟̾̔"͉̻̅̅ ͚̤̊̚ he adds quietly, letting his words sink in slowly. Marvin’s eyes widen as he shakes and curls his hands into fists.

“Y-you can’t… You wouldn’t…” The magician mumbles brokenly.

“Oh but I can,” Anti giggles slightly, “Even with my little host waking up I still have enough power to make you fade in the most painful way possible.” Marvin’s shoulders shake violently as he tries to hide his terror.

“I could then go in and erase you from Jack’s mind… erase you from the fans’ minds… So you could never come back~” Anti whispers with glee, “ Or I could leave just enough of you floating around that you would be around but not enough you could reform…oh that sounds like it would be so much fun~!” Anti laughs madly, throwing Marvin’s head down as he stands up to full height, watching the small magician cower.

“And since you couldn’t do what I needed… I’ll just go get another puppet! I’m sure with JJ’s feeble little powers he could do something.. Maybe I could suck Jackie’s powers and-”

“Stop!” Marvin sobs, rising up on shaking arms. ”Just… stop… please…” He chokes out brokenly.

Anti regards the shameful display with a cold expression.

“Alright, but what will you do now Puppet?’

Marvin grits his teeth. “I… I’ll figure something out… He won’t wake up.. I’ll make sure of that.”

“You better,” The glitch snarls. He then turns heel and starts heading back through the door that leads to whatever room he’s locked the two up in. But before he stalks out, the demon pauses before he reaches into his pocket and pulls out an object. He throws it Marvin’s way.

“See if that’ll help you, kitten,” He calls out as he starts to close the door behind him, “And you better have something figured out soon. I’m not a patient man.” The door slams loudly shut behind the glitch, making Marvin flinch and curl in on himself.

Marvin peeks open his eyes to see what Anti had thrown him. Marvin crawls to the small item, his entire body sore from the beating he just took. Marvin carefully scoops it up and studies it.

It’s a small crocheted doll. With blue buttons eyes. The hair looks like it’s made of dark brown felt. It’s a Jack doll. Just holding it in his hands sends shivers down Marvin’s spine.

What the hell was he supposed to do with this?

Marvin settles his back against Jack’s bed frame as tears threaten to fall from his eyes. He listens to the quiet breathing and gasps from his creator with a heavy heart. He shouldn’t even be doing this. Jack didn’t deserve this. But if he didn’t… everyone would suffer. And he would disappear.

Marvin chokes on a quiet sob at the thought, curling in on himself and hugging the tiny doll to his chest.

His magic wasn’t meant for this. He trained his magic to either dazzle or help people. He never wanted his magic to hurt anyone. He didn’t want to control people.

He could hypnotize people, sure. But he never wanted to... not for his own gain. And this was far beyond that now… Anti wanted Jack in a coma. Alive but asleep. Out of the way.

Marvin’s brain struggles to think of a solution. He thinks back to his time studying magic. Hadn’t he read something similar to this?

A hazy memory swirls in Marvin’s head.

_He’s younger, hanging out in the Phantom Dream Emporium after a training session with Phantom himself. The other figment had gone to get them food for a job well done. Leaving Marvin to man the shop while he was gone._

_Marvin had gotten curious and decided to leaf through some books lining the bookshelves. He felt drawn to the spine of a certain book. The color of it was the blackest black Marvin had ever seen, bound with purple trim. There’s a certain hum of energy and power emanating from the book that sets Marvin’s nerves on fire as his fingers brushed against the tome, carefully sliding it from the shelf. The cover is blank, the pages yellowed by time and dog eared. Carefully Marvin pries the book open, almost with difficulty._

_As Marvin skims through the pages, time seems to still. Marvin’s brain is on overdrive, trying to process as much information as he can from the book. Something inside him is screaming at him that this is wrong. He shouldn’t be reading this. But, there’s so much to learn from this. So much he had never known. Magic he hadn’t realized existed-_

_Suddenly the book is being pried away from him and Marvin cries out in protest. Phantom’s usual dark eyes spark with crimson fire as he glares at the young magician. Marvin swallows._

_“You shouldn’t be reading this Marvin,” Phantom scolds quietly. He slams the book shut and slides it back into place._

_“Why not?” Marvin bites back. “You’re teaching me magic, and that has magic I’ve never even heard of!”_

_Phantom purses his lips and growls slightly, “You aren’t powerful enough to use this magic. Nor is it suited for you.” Phantom shakes his head and loops his arm around the cat masked boy, putting on a dazzling smile. “C’mon kid-”_

Marvin’s eyes shoot open as the memory fades. Sweat drips down his face. That book… he remembers some of the spells. Manipulation... summoning... voo-doo- It's like his mind kept mental snapshots of the books' contents, a haze clearing so he can see it fully. 

He knows what he can use now.

The magician swallows as he looks down at the doll Anti gave him. Who knew this would actually help him…. But he needs something else.

Marvin stands up on shaking legs and makes his way to the head of Jack’s bed. The Youtuber is still sleeping quite restlessly, his eyes moving rapidly under his eyelids. Marvin feels numb for a second as he stares at Jack. His creator was never going to forgive him for this.

The boy swallows and reaches out, quickly taking some of Jack’s locks in his hand and yanking. Jack whimpers slightly as Marvin pulls a chunk of hair away from his head. Marvin takes the hair and stuffs it within the holes that make up the doll’s body.

Marvin then cradles the tiny doll in his hands, slowly concentrating on filling its body with his magic. He shuts his eyes, trying to think of Jack in his mind. Marvin’s fingertips feel like they’re being filled with electricity as he opens his eyes back up. He sees a small green glowing ball rising out of the doll and it floats gently above where its heart would be. The neon green color of the orb sets Marvin’s heart racing, the color too similar to Anti’s. Then he realizes it’s softer, bright but not blinding.

A gasp from behind him has Marvin turning around rapidly. Jack’s eyes have opened but they’re glowing the same soft green as the orb from his doll. A green light echoes the color on his chest. Marvin swallows and shakily turns his attention back to the doll.

Marvin reaches out and carefully takes the ball in his hand. Immediately Marvin hears Jack’s voice. His loud energetic cadence fills Marvin with warmth. His laughter echoes in Marvin’s ears and he smiles slightly. But Marvin quickly shakes off the smile, a serious frown taking its place. Marvin grips the orb and starts to push it back into the doll. He struggles to push it back however, the orb resisting the path. Marvin grits his teeth, his eyes flowing blue with power as he presses harder. The voice from the orb starts to change into something less pleasant.

Still, the orb refuses to move. Marvin’s magic starts to fade from green-blue to slightly purplish as Marvin forces it down with all his might. Suddenly Jack’s voice is screaming in Marvin’s head as the orb starts to disappear from the surface and dissolves back into the doll. The heart monitor beside Jack starts rapidly beeping in distress as the Irishman grits and cries out in pain. Marvin shoves the orb down forcefully. A burst of purple magic rockets from the space, sending the doll flying out of Marvin’s hands.

The heart monitor’s sirens cut off. Jack quiets, his head slumping limping on his pillow, his eyes shut once again. His breathing is so quiet now, almost as if he’s not breathing at all. But the heart monitor continues its beeping, even though the heart rate is frighteningly low.

Marvin tries to catch his breath, his fingers alight with magic still. They feel like they’re burning. Marvin swallows, his arms shaking. He slowly turns around and looks down at Jack, wondering if his spell worked. Gently, Marvin brushes his fingers against his creator’s forehead.

Suddenly, Marvin can see what he seems to know is inside Jack’s head. It’s dark and silent. Expect for a slight noise. Marvin recognizes it though. He’d know that deranged glitching laughter anywhere.

The magician draws his hand away, guilt burning painfully in his stomach. Then his stomach actually begins to burn, the sudden change unbearable. Marvin cries out, his knees cracking against the tile as his whole body seems to be alight with a terrifying pain. Like the magic flowing through his veins had turned to liquid fire. Marvin shakily looks at his hand, trying to understand what could be happening. He sees his veins seem to glow a sinister-looking purple under his skin.

The edges of Marvin’s vision is turning that same purple as well. The feeling of his chaotic untapped magic seems to capture Marvin in its grasp. The swirling essence claws around Marvin’s throat. Marvin chokes, unable to breathe as he clumsily grasps his hands against his neck, his scar burning. Marvin feels like he’s being swallowed whole by this strange power as his vision tunnels, everything being tinted dark purple as his vision fades.

A strange strangled laugh is the last thing Marvin hears as his eyes begin to roll up into the back of his head, his body shutting down from the pain. Marvin’s blood runs cold as he realizes the laughter sounds like it came from him. Then he hits the ground with a sickening crack and everything falls silent.


	3. Amnesia and Whispers

The sound of thundering footsteps rouses Marvin from his sleep. His whole body feels like a ton of bricks. His throat feels raw and his fingertips feel blistered. The only thing Marvin can register is pain as he fully wakes up.

A gentle hand weighs down on Marvin’s shoulder, startling the magician and causing him to spring up, curling in on himself. Marvin blinks as he sees a familiar concerned face.

“J-Jackie…?”

Tears are already springing into the hero’s eyes as his lip quivers. He pulls Marvin into a tight hug, burying his face into the other’s shoulder.

“M-Marvin!” Jackie cries, “Thank god we finally found you! W-We found your apartment just in ruin weeks ago and no one knew where you were. We figured Anti took you but we didn’t know where- a-and then Jack was gone too!” Jackie sniffles and wipes at his nose with his sleeve, shakily taking a breath. “I’m just so glad you’re okay…”

Marvin’s whole body feels numb as he sits limply in Jackie’s hug.

“J..Jackie… weeks…? what are you talking about…?”

Jackieboy tenses before he draws away, studying Marvin’s face with a frown.

“Marv… do you not remember how you got here? Why you were here?”

Marvin slowly looks around, realizing the room looks foreign to him. He looks down at his clothes, confused on why they’re ruined, ripped, and filthy. Blood dots various areas and Marvin balks at the multitude of bruises and scrapes all over his body. He doesn’t recall getting any of these.

He looks beyond Jackie to a small seemingly medical set up. He sees Schneep bending over a body asleep on a cot, with Chase and Jamie hovering around him in worry. Marvin’s heart stops when he realizes it's Jack asleep on the bed. Jack’s skin is pale and lines of blood run down his cheeks like tears. He barely looks like he’s breathing.

The magician begins to shake, drawing his hands up to his chest and rubbing his wrists on instinct. He feels slight abrasions and tears in his skin as if strings were wrapped around them. Marvin’s breath hitches, and he hiccups slightly in panic, eyes wide and scared.

“Marvin?!” Jackie quickly sets a comforting hand on Marvin’s leg as he watches his best friend. Marvin swallows and curls up smaller.

“I-i-i don’t r-remember… i-i don’t remember a-anything!,” Marvin whimpers. He can’t stop his shaking as he huddles his legs closer to himself. Had he actually been taken by Anti for weeks? What had he done to him? What had he done to Jack?!

Marvin’s thoughts are cut off as rough hands grab his shoulders and pull him. Marvin’s face meets Jackie’s chest, the bright red of his uniform bringing the panicked magician slight comfort.

“Just breathe for me, buddy,” Jackie gently encourages, “Everything is going to be okay… We’ll get you home and we’ll figure this out okay?” Marvin’s tense muscles slowly unwind as he tries to calm his breathing. He slowly wraps his shaking arms around the hero’s middle and buries his face into Jackie’s chest. He immediately starts sobbing.

Jackie softly brushes back Marvin’s hair. After a while, Jackie sighs, “I’m sorry… I’m sorry I left you alone for so long Marv… I won’t let that happen ever again.”

Marvin sniffles and nods slightly against his chest. But something uneasy still stirs in Marvin’s gut. He sees just past where the two are sitting a small shape of something. A doll.

Marvin’s fingers reach for the object, discreetly trying to grab it before Jackie notices. Something tells him Jackie isn’t supposed to see whatever this thing is. Marvin feels a spark of energy as he cups the object, his eyes flashing purple for a fraction of a second. The magic feels familiar yet foreign.

“Jackie!” Schneep calls from the corner, “We need your help to move Jack to the hospital!” Jackie nods and gets up, heading over. Marvin quickly shoves the doll in his pocket before the others notice, the action sending chills down his spine for some reason. He can feel heat from the doll surging in his pocket. Marvin was so concerned with hiding the doll he jumps when a hand reaches down to him.

JJ smiles gently at the magician, offering his hand to help him up. Marvin hesitates for a second before he grabs the hand and Jamie hauls him to his feet. Marvin’s legs waver and he nearly falls back over but Jameson quickly catches him.

“S-sorry..” Marvin mumbles self consciously, a small blush rising on his cheeks. JJ shakes his head and smiles more, helping to lead him to the others.

Schneep helps lower Jack into Jackie’s arms, making sure that he holds the Irishman properly. Then he notices Marvin and rushes over, slapping his hands on the magician’s shoulders.

“Marvin!” He pleads, “Can you teleport us to the hospital? I don't think Jack vill make it long in an ambulance.”

Marvin shudders away, the violent touch making his anxiety spike. He stares down Schneep with wide eyes, trying to control his shaking. Jamie wraps him in a gentle, barely touching hug, his face painted with concern.

“Henrik, bro… don’t push him,” Chase offers quietly. “We don’t know what he’s been through.”

Marvin shakily swallows before shaking his head and pushing out of Jamie’s grasp to stand up fully. His knees shake but he manages to stand his ground.

“No,” Marvin rasps, “I... I can do it.” He reaches out his hands and screws his face up in concentration. His hands shake as they begin to glow blue-green. The others look at each other warily as they begin to glow green in tandem with the magic. Marvin grits his teeth as sweat drips down his face. His magic wasn’t responding like he wanted it to.

“Marv, it’s okay if you can’t,” Chase cautioned, “We’ll figure something else out-”

“Shut up!” Marvin snaps, his eyes flashing with power. One of the monitors next to Jack’s bed explodes in a flurry of sparks.

“Jesus!” Jackie startles back, “Watch it, dude!”

Marvin growls, trying to concentrate harder. Then suddenly his eyes flash purple and the six of them disappear in clouds of blue-green smoke.

They appear in an empty room in the hospital across town. Marvin wheezes and slumps down to his knees, his whole face covered in sweat. Henrik wastes no time, quickly grabbing Jackie’s sleeve and dragging him and Jack down the hall, quickly calling for the other staff.

Jamie and Chase kneel down by Marvin as the magician tries to catch his breath. Marvin’s vision swims in front of him and he feels like throwing up. Chase rubs comforting circles into his back.

“Great job, buddy,” He smiles and Jameson gives him a big thumbs up. Marvin shakily returns the smile then suddenly he lurches forward and spills out the contents of his stomach onto the slick tile floor. He then nearly faints into the sick but Jamie manages to catch him yet again.

Chase and Jameson help Marvin up and lays his arms over their shoulders.

“Let’s get you somewhere you can rest,” Chase assures calmly and Marvin nods trying to focus on walking so they won’t have to carry his dead weight. The second they find where Schneep had gone with Jackie and find a cot for Marvin, he passes out almost immediately.

Hours pass. The others head off to rest themselves, leaving just Jack and Marvin in the room. Marvin wakes up after a while to find the room empty. He shivers from the deja vu of being alone with Jack. The doll in his pocket seems to pulse with power again and Marvin slowly takes it out to study it. Its chest glows purple when he touches it and Marvin’s head is filled with images he doesn’t understand. He hears laughter and glitching and Jack’s screams and he flings the doll across the room in terror. Flashes of what he can only assume are memories Anti erased swirl in his brain, setting his nerves on fire.

Jackie comes back later to find Marvin having a panic attack. He rushes over to his best friend’s side and grabs onto his arm to try to anchor him. Marvin cries out and tries to slap him away, his eyes filled with anxious tears. He’s hyperventilating so badly his breathing sounds like damaged squeaks. Jackie feels like panicking with him, seeing him like this. But Instead, he just takes Marvin’s hand and calmly tries to take Marvin through some breathing exercises. At first, it seems like Marvin can hardly even see Jackie but soon he seems to catch onto the pattern and starts to breathe along with the hero.

It takes a while but eventually Marvin’s breathing slows down to normal. Jackie slowly wraps the magician up into a hug and Marvin sinks into it, weakly laying his head on the hero’s shoulder.

“You okay?” Jackie eventually asks. Marvin just barely nods, taking shaking hands to wrap around the hero’s middle. Jackie swallows, unsure of what else to do.

“You.. you wanna sleep at my house again?” Jackie offers, “So you don’t have to be alone.”

Marvin shudders again at the feeling of deja vu but he nods and curls up closer to Jackie, not wanting to let go. Jackie sighs and rubs Marvin’s back as comfortingly as he can. Eventually, Marvin calms down enough that Jackie can take him home.

The apartment is exactly as Marvin remembers it and he hates how things just keep repeating. But there is a certain comfort in knowing Jackie still kept the guest room ready for Marvin. Jackie leads him to the bedroom and helps him sit down on the bed. He opens his mouth to ask Marvin something but he’s cut off by his phone ringing. He takes it out and Marvin can see the image is the one he uses to signal an emergency call. Jackie looks back at Marvin in conflicted concern.

Marvin offers a weak smile, “Go on Jackie. People need you more than I do right now. I’ll be alright.”

Jackie’s face lights up slightly as he pockets his phone. “I promise I’ll be back really soon.” Marvin just nods and smiles, but it doesn’t reach up to his eyes. Jackie sprints out the door, and Marvin sees him race up and down the hall to gather his suit and gadgets. Marvin chuckles slightly to himself at the sight. But then he hears something.

Jackie seems to be talking to someone else on the phone.

“JJ, how quick can you get here? I think I’ll need you again.” Jackie chuckles slightly, “Alright speedy, I see you. Let’s rock and roll.”

JJ.. helping Jackie? That couldn’t be… why would Jackie?

Marvin hears Jackie open the window and he quickly springs off the bed and after the hero. He manages to reach the window just as Jackie lands on the next building over. Marvin looks down to see Jamie in a weird old-timey outfit and wearing a mask, eagerly following after Jackie. Jamie brings out his pocket watch and snaps and appears next to Jackie on the roof. Jackie laughs and slaps Jamie on the back before motioning for him to follow him. JJ jumps after him and the two disappear from view.

Marvin is stunned speechless. Jackie…Jackie had replaced him. Threw him out like he was nothing while Anti was doing god knows what to him. Marvin felt his blood begin to boil.

“Jackie replaced me,” He heard himself growl low in his throat, “ with that no good, immature, hardly magic wannabe?! With JAMIE?!”

Something behind him sounds off with a loud band. He whips around, flame in hand, to see Jackie’s TV broken and fizzling with purple sparks. He lowers his flames and stares at the tv with wide eyes. He realizes he never canceled the flame and sees now that it has turned a tinted purple. He cries out and shakes the flame off of his hand.

“What… what the hell?” Marvin whispers, staring at the lingering magic at his fingertips. “What is happening to my magic? Did..did Anti do this?”

Marvin backs against the window, his anger swirling together with his fear at what was happening. His emotions were a whirlwind right now, he couldn’t understand which way was up and which way was down.

An unstable bitter laugh bursts from Marvin’s mouth as he shakily balls his hand into a fist.

“This is all just one big joke…” He scoffs, “T-the universe just loves to mess with me. Loves to fuck with me.” He bares his teeth and grips his fist harder before he slams it against the window behind him. He feels pain and feels the glass shatter underneath his skin but he doesn’t care.

“Well, I’m sick of it!” Marvin screams to no one, “I’m sick of being the one to fuck with, you hear me?!" His vision tints purple as weird emotions stir faster and faster in his stomach. “I refuse to be the plaything anymore!”

He feels tears rise up in his eyes and he shakes them away as he continues to shout at the sky, “Give me some goddamn answers! A fucking chance to fight back! I don’t want to be pushed around anymore! Let me be the one with power for ONCE!”

Marvin’s shouting gets interrupted as he feels heal crawl up his body. He then realizes he’s being consumed by purple flames that continue to scale up his legs and towards his torso. He cries out and tries to run but he trips and soon everything turns purple. He screams.

But when he opens his eyes the heat and fire are gone. But he’s not in Jackie’s apartment anymore. He’s on the street somewhere. Somewhere he doesn’t recognize. He rises to his feet, feeling self-conscious of the looks some people are giving him. He huddles in on himself, realizing he never got a chance to change after being saved.

“Where… the hell am I?” He whispers to himself as he studies his surroundings. He turns around to see he’s in front of some strange looking shop. A fortune teller’s shop.

“Something is really wrong with my magic…” Marvin mumbles as he rubs the bridge of his nose with a sigh. He pushes back his hair and tries to concentrate on a spell to bring him back home.

Then suddenly he feels a pull in his gut and he’s being thrust through the doors of the shop like he was pushed from behind. He stumbles onto the cold floor, his bare feet slapping loudly against the tiles. It’s cold in here, Marvin swears he can see his breath. He hugs his arms and tries to control his shivering as he feels dark tendrils of dangerous magic curl around him. The room around him is littered with hundreds of decorative mirrors. The paths that led to different rooms are covered with heavy red curtains. The space is illuminated by small candles collected on top of trunks and drawers that line the wall. The fire in the candles seems to shift in hue, shifting from black and white back to colored. Marvin shakily swallows.

“H-Hello?” He calls out into the darkness, “D-did you call me here? What do you want with me?”

A dark feminine chuckle echoes around Marvin as his breath hitches. He notices a mirror in front of him, like a centerpiece. It’s brown and wooden, very different from the silver and gold and ornate mirrors that surround it. The glass is shattered and as Marvin gazes into it, he sees the reflection isn’t his. It reflects a brightly colored room with two frosted glass windows, a door, and a couch. Then the image seems to glitch and Marvin jumps back in terror. The image shifts from blue and red tinted before settling back on red and a figure stares back at Marvin through the mirror. A woman with short clipped hair, wearing a veil staring at him with a slightly sinister grin.

Marvin takes a step back.

“I... I know you…” He whispers, recognizing the woman from somewhere. A sense of deja vu.

“Marvin the Magnificent,” She speaks, her voice echoing hollow and tinny throughout the shop. “I see forces have brought you here for answers…

“My name is Celine, though I suppose that doesn’t matter as much to you as what you seek.”

‘What do you mean?” Marvin bites back. “I-i’m not seeking anything!”

“You seek answers, child. Power.” Celine counters, “A way to right the wrongs that have been done to you.”

“That’s not-”

Celine silences him with an outstretched hand. That starts to come out of the mirror, followed by Celine’s whole body. She steps out of the mirror like a ghost passing through a wall and approaches Marvin slowly. Marvin gasps as the temperature drops even more. Celine’s form flickers and shifts like she’s caught in a small wind. Occasionally her image flickers as if tinted by red, or she turns red altogether before snapping back. Marvin tries to back away but his body won’t respond. Finally, Celine’s hand meets Marvin’s chest and she steps close enough so their faces just barely touch. Marvin can’t feel any hint of air coming out of her mouth.

Her eyes unsettle Marvin the most. She looks blind, the whole of her eye is a glossy white. Almost as if they’ve been replaced by pearls. They shine unnaturally in the light, reflecting and changing colors in the flickering of the candles. Marvin feels his stomach drop as he stares at them like he’s not sure where to look.

“Let’s see what the dark needs to tell me about you,” She whispers, as she plunges her fingers inside Marvin’s chest. He screams and scrambles backward, only for Celine to pin him against one of the walls. The mirrors behind him rattle and shake as Marvin feels his chest flood with a cold icy energy. He gasps as images appear before his eyes. Flashes of him and Jackie, him and Jack, him and Anti. They all swirl together, a mess of past and present. Past and future. Things Marvin can’t even begin to piece together with how rapidly they fly past him.

Just as soon as it starts, the visions end, and Marvin crumbles to the floor, gasping for breath. Celine stares forward, her long fingers tinted blue to green then to purple. The essence goops and splats on the floor as Celine seems to contemplate it when a blank expression.

Her form whisps away like a gust of wind before Marvin. He struggles upwards to his feet, looking around rapidly to where she could have gone.

“You’ve been forgotten.” Celine’s voice whispers around the room, echoing and mixing over her own voice as she continues, “You’ve been replaced. Slighted. Pushed aside. Used. Taken advantage of.”

Her voice grows louder. “You seek revenge.”

Marvin cries out, “No I don’t! I wouldn’t-”

“Don’t lie to me, Magician!” Celine suddenly snaps, her images displayed on the mirrors illuminated red, her eyes reflecting the chilling color.

“You want power,” She continues in a cooler tone, “You want the power to right what has been done to you. You wish to ruin. You wish to hurt.”

“I-i…” Marvin stares down at his hands as they shake. He.. he had been thinking that. He had been thinking that he needed some way to fight back. Against Anti. Against Jamie. Against this whole damn world. But he knew he never could. Not with his magic. His magic was meant to dazzle, to help-

“There are forces in this world that can aid you, Magician. Forces you peeked into but were forbidden from following. There’s a spark of darkness in you now.” Marvin shivers and sees his hands alight with that purple fire again. “ Don’t run from the darkness. Grab it. Use it. Then no one will ever stand against you again.”

A twisted sense of satisfaction at the thought prods in Marvin’s head. He feels his lip curl slightly into a smirk. Then his face drops.

“M-my friends… i-i don’t want to hurt them. I already can’t control my corrupted magic from An..from him. I should talk to them… I shouldn’t-”

“Your friends?” Celine spits. Images of Jackie, Schneep, Chase, and Jamie flash across the surfaces of the mirrors.

“They left you, Marvin. They’ve left you over and over. Overlooked you, time and time again. Belittled you. Questioned your magic. Blamed you for everything you tried to do to help them.”

The image all shift to red-tinted images of Jackie on the mirrors and one by one they crack.

“Your hero friend is the worst offender. He replaced you. You, his best friend. He never believed in you, in your potential.”

Celine’s face pops up in Marvin’s face and he hardly reacts, captivated by her words.

“You must show him how wrong he was. Shove that useless parlor trickster aside and show the hero how mighty Marvin the Magnificent can be!” Celine sings sweetly, caressing Marvin’s face slightly.

“Then you can find the power to down that little glitch problem of yours.” She grins. She steps back, letting her fingers trail off Marvin’s conflicted face.

“I believe a place from your past will aid you in the power you seek, young Magician.” Celine steps back into her mirror and gives Marvin a semi-kind smile.

“Don’t hide from the darkness, Marvin. Embrace it. Use it. The world will never slight you again.”

Celine then disappears, her mirror’s face fading to black, leaving Marvin alone in an empty room. Surrounded by reflections of himself.

They all seemed to be staring at him.

Marvin hugged himself as he huddled on the floor. Celine’s words echoed in his ears over and over. Twisting his thoughts. He knew… he knew revenge and payback was wrong. But most of him didn’t care anymore. He was just sick of it all. Sick of getting the short end of the stick.

It was time for him to be up on top. No matter what it took.


	4. Changing Minds

As Marvin walked out of the shop, he huddled his arms against himself, mulling over Celine’s words.

“Something… from my past…” Marvin mused out loud as he wandered down the street lost in thought. He shivered as a cold wind blew right through him. He looked down and remembered he was still barefoot and in the clothes from his capture from Anti. He growled slightly at the thought, looking at his ruined pair of jeans and ratty shirt.

He looked on the street he had wandered down to see it lined with shops. Marvin’s face lit up slightly as he jogged to the front of a shop window, looking at the displays. He quickly saw a mannequin that caught his eye. It was sporting a snappy outfit, with a bright blue collared shirt, slick silver vest, black slacks, and a thick jacket, as well as nice leather shoes. Marvin shivered again at the wind and huddled closer to the window, staring at the display.

He knew what he was thinking was wrong. But some dark part in his head whispered to him It doesn’t matter really, does it? They’ll never stop you. You’re blessed with power beyond their capabilities.

Marvin stares before a smirk comes over his face. He eyes the outfit, then snaps. In a small poof of purple and green smoke, Marvin’s ruined clothes take their place on the mannequin and Marvin now dons the outfit in the shop. He grins to himself and admires the outfit, feeling some tension leave his body. He steps over and attempts to adjust the outfit in the glass’s reflection only to be jolted by another sight in the shop.

A red and black outfit sits before him. A red collared shirt, black vest, and white slacks. Marvin looks at the reflection to see his startled face over the mannequin’s shoulders as if he was wearing the outfit. He remembers being forced to wear an outfit just like that.

“Phantom…” Marvin breathes, staring at it. Then it hits him.

Phantom’s book. That strange pitch-black tome he remembered reading when he was first learning magic. That must be what Celine was hinting at. Marvin swallows shakily at the thought of being anywhere near Phantom. But what better way to get back at him than to steal something from the con man?

Marvin’s hesitant expression morphs into one of confidence as he snaps once more. His mask appears in his open palm and Marvin quickly puts it on and adjusts how it looks in the reflection before turning around. He catches a glimpse out of the corner of his eye of the shopkeeper behind him finding the new strange ensemble on his mannequin, then seeing the cheeky magician walking away with his merchandise. He tries to shout after Marvin, but the magician simply turns around and gives them shopkeep a shit-eating grin before cockily saluting at him and disappearing in a cloud of green smoke.

In a blink of an eye, Marvin is at the door of Phantom’s Dream Emporium. A shiver runs up his spine at the sight but he pushes past the feeling and raises a hand to try to blast through the door. But instead his magic flares and before he even has a chance to react there’s a pull in his gut and suddenly he’s inside the parlor. He blinks and looks down at his slightly glowing hands.

“How… How did I do that?” He whispers. Marvin is not usually able to teleport so easily or teleport so soon after already doing so. He shakes his head and moves over to focus on the task at hand.

Marvin tiptoes quietly across the red velvet floor, making his way to the bookshelf in the back. The magician seems almost drawn directly to where the black book rests, exactly where he remembers it being. A grin crosses his face and he grabs the book and flips it open. A surge of power seems to tickle at his fingertips as his eyes glow purple.

Then Marvin’s head snaps up at the sound of movement in the hall.

“Someone’s in the shop-!” A muffled voice shouts as rapid footsteps race down the steps. Soon past the curtain, a black-haired man with purple streaks running down his face bursts into view. His eyes widen as he locks eyes with the magician.

“Marvin?” The man asks, looking surprised. Marvin sneers slightly and takes a step back, holding the book close to his chest. The action catches the man’s eyes and he tries to stride forward.

“Hey! Put that down!”

Suddenly the lights flare a soft red as another figure stumbles past the curtains.

“Mare, what the hell is that racket?” Phantom asks, stumbling into the parlor. Even though it has been over a month since their last encounter, Phantom still looks pale and spent. He leans and uses his scepter to walk and he has dark purple bags under his eyes. As he finishes stumbling into the room, his eyes spark red in slight fear as he sees Marvin.

“M-Marvin…” The con man breathes, stumbling backward slightly. Marvin can see the dark-haired man’s shoulders shaking and a rush of some kind of feeling he can’t explain grips his gut. Another smile tugs at the corners of his mouth. It felt good to see his enemy trembling before him.

“Gentlemen!” Marvin sings sightly, opening up his arms and holding up the book for all to see, “How good to see you both again.”

Phantom’s eyes snap up to the book in dumbfounded disbelief as he shakily tries to take a step forward, arm outstretched.

“Marvin, drop that now!” Phantom stumbles on the edge of the carpet and nearly faceplants but Mare sprints and manages to catch him before he falls completely. Phantom pushes himself up in the other ego’s arm. “You don’t know what that book can do. Trust me! You don’t want to mess with that kind of magic!” He sounds almost desperate.

Marvin chuckles as he leans back and casually flips through the book, “Oh I’m fully aware of what it’s capable of.” He looks up over the edge of the book and gives Phantom a playful frown, “And here I was thinking you’d be gracious enough to let me take a gift like this for all the torture you put me through.” Marvin’s eyes flash green in anger as he says this. Phantom sinks slightly back into Mare’s arms as his brother grips him tighter and glares at Marvin.

“Isn’t that your thing Phantom? Equal exchange? A deal has to have a reward, no?” Marvin sneers.

“Marvin, listen i-” The con man stammers.

“You tortured me. Took away my magic. Who I was. You tore my family apart. Then, you tortured them!” Marvin finds himself yelling, a rocket of green flame catching parts of the shop on fire. They fizzle down and die as Marvin takes another step forward.

“This is but a small price you’ll pay for your sins, Phantom.”

Phantom gulps and sets his face in a determined expression as he raises his cane at the cat-masked magician. “I can’t let you take that book, Marvin. I-i can give you whatever else you want, but you can’t have that. It will destroy you, and everyone around you.”

Marvin glowers down at the pathetic sight in front of him. He strides forward and knocks Phantom’s scepter away from him.

“I don’t believe you’re in the position to be making deals, Phantom,” Marvin comments lightly as he rests his foot on top of the staff. He hums in thought and flips through the book and quickly finds the spell he was looking for. Almost as if the book was responding to him.

“But if you’re only to get in my way… I suppose this is a great chance to invoke some… “ He hums again and looks towards the ceiling as he tries to think of the word.

“...Justice.”

Marvin snaps his fingers and a blast of purple and green light blinds the two figments huddled on the ground. When they next open their eyes, they see the world through red-tinted glass. Phantom gasps and scrambles to his feet only to realize he and Mare are now trapped in one of his crystal balls.

Marvin chuckles and reaches down to grab the ball, admiring it in the light. “Or that’s what Jackie would say,” He laughs.

“No!” Phantom screams, cracking his hands against the glass, “Marvin! You can’t do this!” Mare tries to quietly get the younger brother to calm down, but the purple streaked ego looks just as freaked.

Marvin scoffs and tosses the ball onto the plush couch in the middle of the parlor. He relishes the sounds of distress coming from the ball as the other egos are tossed about.

“I’m sure you’ll figure out a way out of there Phantom,” Marvin smugly calls behind him as he tucks the book under his arm. “Your magic is stronger than mine, isn’t it?” He looks back then kicks the scepter he still had underneath him near the bottom of the couch.

“Oh,” He winces in false sympathy, “Gonna be kinda hard without that though.” He then shrugs and waves goodbye to the trapped figments even as they scream at him from the ball, “Goodbye boys! Hope you enjoy your stay~!” He then grins almost sinisterly as he snaps his fingers and disappears.

Marvin appears in Jackie’s apartment, grinning to himself, feeling better than he had in days. He strides forward and nearly collides with Jameson.

Jameson bumps lightly into Marvin’s torso and lightly rubs his nose in a playful manner. The mute man has a navy blue uniform and what looks like one of Jackie’s old masks huddled in his arms that he quickly throws behind him onto the back of the couch.

“Marvin!” He signs, grinning brightly, yet he looks somewhat guilty. “Good to see you, old chap! You were quite in a rush there, huh?”

Anger burns in the magician’s stomach as he looks down at Jamie. The little traitor.

“Hello Jameson,” Marvin replied somewhat coldly.

JJ doesn’t seem to notice though as he gives a silent whistle and looks Marvin up and down.

“My! What a grand outfit you’ve found, friend!” He circles the magician and marvels at the fabric. “Wherever did you find it?” He cocks his head up at Marvin and wiggles his mustache in glee.

Marvin gives him a small smirk, “In town.”

Jamie claps in excitement. “Oh you’ll have to show me sometime!” he signs quickly, “We need inspiration for our next impromptu fashion show!” The mute man claps Marvin on the arm good-naturedly and wiggles his mustache in laughter, “If we can get the others to agree this time, that is!”

Marvin tenses away slightly but forces out a smile to the teal haired gentlemen, “Indeed…”

Jamie smiles at Marvin and signs a little more slowly, “Well I should let you get back to whatever had you rushing so!” He tips his hat to Marvin and turns back around to grab the items he threw onto the couch.

Marvin frowns and begins to pull the black book out of his jacket, preparing to look for a spell. Then suddenly he feels a spark across his fingertips and his eyes glow and he suddenly knows exactly what spell to use without even looking for it. He smiles. That’s convenient.

He tucks the books away and turns back around to Jamie as the man cleans up the mess he made.

“I see you have a new outfit as well, Jameson,” Marvin calls out smoothly as he pads his way over to the other figment. Jamie seems to tense slightly and he peeks behind him at Marvin. He looks like a child caught doing something they weren’t supposed to do.

Marvin gives Jamie a look and the gentlemen sighs and sets the clothing down and adjusts his vest self consciously. “So… you noticed then..” He signs, looking downcast.

“I did,” Marvin nearly spits but he tries to keep his voice level and calm, “Care to explain, friend?”

Jamie’s shoulders tense as he looks away. Eventually, he sighs and looks up at Marvin, tears brimming in the corners of his eyes.

“Jackie…Jackie needed someone to help him while you were… taken. He was so distraught he didn’t think he could do it alone… He… He thought I had potential as a sidekick and…” Jamie’s hands still as he tries to find the words, “I… I wanted to try being like you. Brave, wonderful, and c-confident you.” Marvin’s heart seems to stop for a second. But anger quickly swallows any other emotions stirring inside him.

“I know I could never replace you,” Jamie continues, “But I wanted to help where I could. I thought… Practicing with Jackie while you were gone might help me prepare for our next encounter.” Jameson squeezes his eyes shut and breathes shakily, “You have every right to be angry with me. But I only wanted to find a way to be strong like you and Jackie…”

Jameson lifts his head with a small shaky smile back towards Marvin, “It’s a crazy idea but maybe… maybe we three could all work together-” JJ’s next words are cut off however by Marvin appearing in front of him and slapping his hand over the mute man’s face. Jamie stumbles backward slightly and blinks frightened at the cat masked magician. His eyes… they were wrong. They glowed with a dark and terrifying purple light.

Jamie squeaks slightly as Marvin grabs his arm and moves him to slam against the wall. Jameson blinks stars out of his eyes and shakily tries to reach up to get Marvin’s hands off of him but he’s too strong. Marvin growls and presses a thumb against Jameson’s forehead. The mute man feels a spark in his brain and the world seems to fade into swirls and spirals. His eyes glaze over. The only thing JJ can see clearly is Marvin.

Marvin sneers quietly, “Listen to me, Jameson. You don’t want to be a hero. You were never cut out to be a hero.” Marvin tilts his head as he watches Jameson take in his influence, “Jackie doesn’t want to fight by someone as weak as you. He needs someone with real power. You are nothing!”

A small tear falls from Jameson’s eye even though his expression doesn’t change. Marvin pushes onward.

“I want you to stay away from Jackie. You don’t need to fill your thoughts with such silly fantasies. Leave the heroing to me, and him.” Marvin then lets go of Jamie’s face altogether, letting the man drop heavily to the floor. Jameson stares up blankly for a second before the light seems to come back to his eyes. He blinks slowly, then rubs at his head.

He stands up and unsteadily signs, “Marvin? Did... did I fall asleep?” He grips his head slightly and blinks stars out of his eyes. Marvin puts on a smile and helps the mute man up.

“Yeah, gave me a scare!” Marvin laughs slightly and leads Jamie towards the couch, “I guess all that work with Jackie must have tired you out.”

Jameson stops in front of the couch and stares at the uniform. Stares at the mask, a gift from Jackie. He swallows a heavy lump in his throat. He picks up the mask and touches it softly, lost in thought.

“I… I suppose so…” Jamie signs. “Perhaps… perhaps I should hang up this silly costume…”

Marvin smiles more and lightly wraps an arm around the other ego and rubs his shoulder, “Jackie will understand if it’s too much for you, Jamie.”

Jameson sniffs some and tiredly hangs his head. “Yes… I think I just need some time…” He turns and brushes past Marvin, quickly heading back towards the front door.

But a red blur stops Jameson before he can leave.

“JJ!” Jackie exclaims as he draws Jamie into a big bear hug, “You were fantastic out there! Crimefighters aren’t gonna stand a chance against us once-” He pauses and lets go of Jamie as he sees Marvin standing in the living room. “Marvin…joins us” He breathes.

Jameson quickly elbows himself out of Jackie’s grip and tries to head out of the apartment again. Jackie stops him by grabbing his shoulder.

“Hey J, what’s wrong?” Jackie asks, concern coloring his whole face. Jameson stares away from him, not wanting to look the hero in the eye. Finally, he grabs the hero’s hand and places something in it. The mask.

JJ stares at the ground as he slowly signs, “I can’t do this anymore.” He then turns heel and quickly heads out the door, leaving behind a confused Jackie.

Jackie stares down at the mask in his hand with a sad expression.

“What was that all about…?” Jackie muses out loud, “He… he was so happy earlier…”

Marvin shrugs, “Heroing might have just been too much for him.”

Jackie’s head snaps up and he too looks guilty, “You knew?”

Marvin gives a fake smile towards Jackie to hide his anger, “You guys aren’t exactly subtle. But, don’t worry, I’m not mad.”

Jackie winces slightly, “You’re not?”

“Not anymore.” Marvin smiles and looks past Jackie towards the door, “Such a shame. A third addition might have been nice.” He then turns to head back to his room, “Lucky we got the original team back though.” He gives a cheeky wave to Jackie as he heads inside.

Jackie frowns and stares down at the mask, not able to push past a strange pit in his stomach.


	5. Wary of Lavender Light

A harsh ring echoed across the room as a phone buzzed on the nightstand next to Jackie’s bed. The superhero groaned and rolled over on his pillow, shielding his face from the sunlight creeping through his curtains. He did not want to get up. He didn’t want to go to work. What was the point of working minimum wage when he was a fucking superhero by night?

“-because otherwise, you wouldn’t have an apartment, dumbass,” Jackie mumbled to himself groggily. With a strained groan, he pushed himself off his stomach out of bed, fluffing up his mop of brunette hair. Blinking the sleep out of his eyes, Jackie reached to his nightstand and unlocked his phone, shutting off his alarm. Though, reaching over the nightstand, his wrist brushed against a piece of fabric and Jackie paused once the noise had quieted to stop and stare. The small blue ragged mask he lendt to Jamie during their brief partnership lay next to him and the hero swallowed hard against the pit in his stomach. He hadn’t heard much from Jameson since that day. It had been almost a week…But, Jackie had assumed he had just thrown himself into extra shifts back down at the haberdashery, now that their “family emergency” was solved.

In fact, this was Jackie’s first day officially back at his own job since everything had gone back to normal. Back to the game shop. Jackie sighed heavily and pulled himself to step out of bed, dragging himself to his closet to tug on his polo shirt and slacks and to make sure the bags under his eyes weren’t too pronounced.

As much as Jackie was dreading going back to work, he was also glad to have an excuse to get out of the house. Ever since JJ dropped the sidekick deal, Jackie had been feeling really depressed. Sure, he loved working with Marvin and he was so happy to have him back. But, he was so excited to show Jamie the ropes of being a hero. He seemed so excited too… full of such joy and drive. What changed?

As Jackie thought to himself, across the hall his ears caught the quiet whisper of chanting and a chill ran up the hero’s spine. The foreign language seemed to burn the air as it slithered around the apartment and Jackie had to resist the urge to just bolt out of his room and run to the store. He had to deal with Marvin before he left.

Marvin had been… strange to say the least this last week. Which, of course, was to be expected. He was kidnapped by Anti. Lost some memories. Of course, he would be fucked up. And he was. For a couple of hours. Then once Jackie had come back from dealing with that criminal with Jamie… Marvin had changed. Jackie didn’t want to say he was a different person. But he certainly wasn’t acting like himself.

Marvin was always one to withdraw himself when he was upset or dealing with something. But, this isolation was something else. Jackie hardly ever saw him. Yet, he refused to go back to his own apartment. It kinda made sense? Maybe he didn’t want to be completely alone… But the magic… the magic was the most unsettling part.

With all that’s happened with his magic lately, Jackie fully expected Marvin to take a break from magic altogether. Jackie thought he knew Marvin… he thought he knew Marvin wouldn’t push himself this hard and fast after something like this. But, Marvin was proving him different. Marvin was a driven person, but he knew how to have fun, knew when to take a break, liked to cause trouble. Jackie had hardly seen Marvin out of his room this week. The magician turned down every one of Jackie’s offers for food or coffee which was…even stranger. Jackie hadn’t seen Marvin eat in a while either. And the hero was pretty much forbidden from stepping foot in Marvin’s room. Even though it was Jackie’s apartment. Something was off.

But a couple of nights ago, Jackie caught something. He came home late only to find a strange glow coming from underneath Marvin’s door. And a sliver of the door cracked open, just enough for someone to peek an eye in. Lavender light flooded the hallway and the air burned and hissed with an energy Jackie had never felt before. And… Marvin’s voice. It had a dark sinister tone as he chanted some long complicated spell.

Using his skills from thousands of stakeouts, Jackie crept down the hall and made to the other side of Marvin’s door frame so he could lean in and observe. In the room, Marvin was bent over on the floor, surrounded by flickering candles whose flames were outlined by green and purple the longer he chanted. The floor was littered with piles of spell books, as well as ripped out pages from said books, written on and highlighted to all hell. A black tome, blacker than any black Jackie had ever seen lay next to Marvin as if he was afraid to let it leave his side. And in Marvin’s hand was a small crocheted doll. It looked like Jack.

The cat masked magician continued to chant and the button eyes of the doll started to glow a dark sick purple, echoing the magic at Marvin’s fingertips. Strings of magic wrapped around the doll’s wrists, ankles, and finally its neck before Marvin yanked his hand back and pulled the strings taut. Jackie didn’t know it was possible for a doll with no face to look like it was in pain. Marvin’s face cracked into a grin and the strings snapped as he spat out the last word of the spell, the light of the candles being snuffed out as the purple glow in the room dimmed. A low chuckle came out of Marvin as he studied the doll in his hands, turning it over in contemplation.

“I bet Anti is very very happy you’re still asleep, Jack,” Marvin mused to himself with a slight unhinged sounding giggle, “He must assume he made such a good little puppet out of me!” Then the smile immediately dropped off his face as he gripped the doll in his hand tight, as if to choke it. His eyes flashed from bright blue to purple as he cocked his head to the toy, a slow smooth smile spreading on his face.

“Won’t he be surprised when he sees I’m the one pulling the strings?”

An involuntary shiver ran up Jackie’s spine as he heard those words fall out of Marvin’s mouth, his blood running cold. Was Marvin saying this of his own free will or was he-?

Suddenly, Marvin’s head snaps around towards the door, the whole of his eyes flowing with purple power. Jackie pushes himself as far away from the door as fast as possible, rushing for his room, hoping he can be convincing enough to look like he just came home. Shit, he’s sweating buckets, his heart is rushing a thousand miles per hour. The door to Marvin’s room slams open and a rush of hot air flows through the hallway, blowing Marvin’s hair and cape up dramatically as he growls. Jackie’s foot in the doorway of his room and he whips around with a forced face of confusion.

“Woah what the hell bro? You expecting a burglar?!”

It seems to have worked as the wind dies down and the purple quickly fades out of Marvin’s eyes. He looks at Jackie bewildered and quickly smooths down his hair.

“Jackie…” Marvin breathes, “I… I didn’t hear you come home.”

Jackie gives Marvin a small smile,” Yeah. You sounded… busy, so I tried to be quiet so I wouldn’t disturb you!” The hero gave the magician a thumbs up and a half-hearted grin, feeling sweat dripping down his forehead. God, he hated lying, though he wasn’t completely lying. He just hoped Marvin believed him, and that whatever freaky spells he was learning didn’t give him the power to read minds…

There’s a long uncomfortable span of silence before Marvin nods his head. He eyes Jackie, then just turns heel and heads back to his room without another word.

Jackie had a lot of trouble sleeping that night…and every night since then.

Something was wrong! But… Jackie was scared to say anything. What if he was just being paranoid? The last time he overreacted to Marvin… well he disappeared and got kidnapped by Anti. Jackie couldn’t let himself be the cause of that again. It would tear him apart.

But, honestly? If Marvin was being controlled still or was corrupted or whatever else was the matter with him…. Jackie was also sure he didn’t want to be on the receiving end of this new magic.

Though if Jackie had to go to work, so did Marvin damnit! Freaky magic or not! It was time for a little tough love.

Jackie steels himself as he pushes himself to stand in front of Marvin’s room, trying not to shiver at the sound of Marvin’s chanting from the other side. Taking a deep breath, the hero swallows and raises his hand, knocking loudly on the door. The chanting stops immediately and soon Marvin is cracking the door open, a look of annoyance on his face.

“What, Jackie?” Marvin demanded, baring his canines slightly. Jackie felt himself shiver again but he tried his best to stand his ground. Though as Jackie tried to gather his words, his eyes wandered to the arm Marvin was using to keep the door open. The hero blinked rapidly as he thought he saw underneath the cloth of his brother’s shirt a series of purple veins. And they were glowing?

Marvin’s exasperated tone snapped Jackie’s gaze away, “Jackie if you don’t have anything to say then-”

“Ah no- I-!”Jackie stammered, shaking his head. “I…” He stood up straighter, setting his face. “I’m heading back to work today. And… You seem to be doing better.” Jackie winced slightly, hoping he didn’t sound too insensitive. “It.. it might be time for you to head back to the theater, don’t you think?”

The magician tilts his head slightly and studies Jackie, with almost no emotion. The seconds tick by so slowly and Jackie wishes Marvin would just say something.

“Then don’t you think it’s about time we got back to hero work, Jackieboy?”

Jackie freezes, a retort dead on his tongue. A smirk creeps up on Marvin’s face, a mischievous light in his eye.

“Oh? I’m sorry, did I strike a nerve, hero?” Marvin purred, stepping forward. Jackie quickly stepped back, clutching his backpack and tensing away from Marvin.

“Marvin, what the hell-?” Jackie bit back, “I-I I haven’t been avoiding hero work-”

“It’s not very herolike to lie, Jackie,” Marvin interrupted, giving him a big Cheshire-like grin. “We all know how heartbroken you’ve been about losing dear Jameson as a… sidekick.” Marvin made sure to make ‘sidekick’ long and drawn out with an obviously fake sad smile. Jackie looked away and bit his lip.

“However,” Marvin continued,” You can’t be selfish, Jackie. People’s lives are at stake!”

Jackie balled his hands into fists and gritted his teeth together, not able to look Marvin in the eye. He could just feel his smug expression.

“…Let me think about it. I’ll decide after work.” Jackie eventually sighs. But then he turns and points at Marvin, narrowing his eyes. “But you! Need to get out of the apartment, Marv! Go to the theater… gets some sun for fuck’s sake! You’ve been acting like a goddamn vampire…”

Marvin just continued to smile smugly at Jackie, not even batting an eyelash. He grabbed Jackie’s finger and pulled it out of his face.

“Whatever you say, Hero. Wouldn’t want to upset my crime-fighting partner!” He then grinned wider, changing his grip on Jackie’s finger to grab it tighter and pull it so he could drag Jackie’s face closer to his. Jackie could feel a strange hum of energy coming off Marvin that sent his hair standing on end. “After all, this could be our grand return to the stage!”

Jackie swore he saw a flicker of purple light in Marvin’s eyes and he quickly pulled away, rubbing his hand as shivers racked his spine.

“Uh yeah… sure. S-See you tonight, then,” Jackie sputtered all too quickly as he made his way for the door. Marvin smiled sweetly after him, waving.

“See you tonight, Jackie!”


	6. Enticement

Jackie’s shift at the store goes by way too fast. He watches the clock tick by faster and faster and feels a cold sweat drip down his back. This is the first time ever Jackie wished he had a longer shift. He was even ready to go around asking if anyone needed him to cover before remembering, he was closing. There were no more shifts to cover.

“Welp, Jackieboy!” boomed a voice behind the hero, with a broad hand clasping down on Jackie’s shoulder. The brunette man jumped about 3 feet in the air. “Time for ya to head home!”

Jackie’s manager, a kindly older gentleman named Kenton, gave the younger boy a concerned look. Kenton removed his hand from Jackie’s shoulder and instead pushed back his mop of brown out of his rapidly paling face.

“What’s the matta, son? You look like ya seen a ghost…”

Jackie shook his head and gave Kenton a shaky smile, adjusting his polo shirt as he shifted restlessly. “Nah man, I’m good… Y-You sure you don’t want me to stay later?”

Kenton gave a good hearty laugh and clapped Jackie on the back, “Not unless you think the game systems need to be babysat while I lock the doors!” The manager then studied Jack’s stiff stance and his face softened. He lowered his tone and knelt down by the hero.

“What’s gotcha so spooked, Jackie?”

The Irish man hunched smaller, a scowl coming across his face. “I-I’m... I’m not scared.” Jackie mumbled, rubbing his arm. “I just… I don’t…” He sighs heavily and massages his neck, “I don’t want to go home and deal with my… roommate is all-”

“You mean your brother? …Green hair? Weird looking cat mask?” Kenton said.

Jackie looked back to him in surprise, “Uh, yeah? How did you know?”

The older man winced slightly before steering Jackie around and pointing out the window, “‘friad you’re gonna have to deal with him a lot sooner than ya thought.”

Jackie felt his blood run cold as he saw Marvin smirking at him through the store window, waving a gloved hand his way. He was dressed in his crime-fighting attire: a shorter cape, gloves, and a black vest over a blue collared shirt rolled up to his elbows. Jackie bit back a tired sigh, his eyes burning with concealed anger. Kenton gave him a wide berth.

“I’m gonna fucking kill him,” Jackie growled as he scooped up his backpack and marched up to the window. Kenton called after him, “Don’t get arrested Jackieboy!” Jackie would have laughed at the irony if he wasn’t so caught up with wiping that smug ass grin off Marvin’s face.

“Well hello, Jackieboy-”

“What the fucking hell do you think you’re doing?” Jackie harshly hissed at Marvin, cutting off Marvin’s greeting. The cat masked magician blinked innocent eyes at the hero behind his mask.

“Well, Jackie! I was only trying to make your choice a little easier! I’m here already, so we should go crime-fighting, right?” Marvin explained, sounding almost offended. Jackie felt his blood boil. He stepped closer to the magician, his brother, fire in his eyes, and bared his teeth and the other man.

“That’s not a decision you get to make for me,” Jackie growled.

Marvin hardly flinched. Instead, his eyes flickered to look at the backpack slung over Jackie’s shoulder before sending a cold apathetic stare back up to the hero. “I know for a fact you brought your super-suit with you. So why push it off? You let your emotions get the better of you, Jackie. People need you. Need us.”

Jackie sputtered, a retort dying on his tongue as Marvin’s cobalt eyes bore holes straight through him. He quickly fumbled to grab onto his backpack strap, stumbling backward. Marvin continued to step forward though, getting closer to Jackie with a dead-eyed stare as if reading Jackie’s very soul. And with how he was acting lately, he very well could be.

“Why are you still so upset over Jameson, Jackie?” Marvin nearly whispered as he neared the hero’s ear. Jackie flinched once again, but Marvin kept going before the brunette could reply, “How much use was he really? You and I have been partners for far longer… didn’t you feel guilty at all for replacing me?” The magician growls this last line like a feral cat, eyes flashing sinister purple before the fire disappears and he straightens, fixing his hair.

“Still… I’m willing to look past… all of that Jackie. We are partners, we should work together no matter what.” Marvin gives the hero a coy smile before letting it fall. “But…. You let your emotions get in the way of it all. You have a duty, Jackie. We have a city to save. You have brothers to save. What if that glitch is out again-”

“JUST SHUT UP!” Jackie finally screams, pushing Marvin away from him. The cat masked brother stumbles back a few feet, blinking bewildered at Jackie while the hero sucks in deep angry breaths.

“You think I don’t know all of this?!” Jackie shouts, hiding his face behind his hands as his body starts to shake slightly. Marvin still looks shocked. “I know I’m being emotional, and moody a-and withdrawn! I know I’m letting people down! I know I fucked up! I didn’t think about how teaming up with Jamie would make you feel! I just knew I was- everything hurt Marv! Y-You were gone! A-and the last thing I did was scream at you! C-cuz I can’t control my anger or emotions!” Marvin sees Jackie’s lip quiver under his hands. “I-I was so racked with guilt…. I was the reason you were alone when he got you. I-I needed someone to help me search and Jamie wanted help with his magic. I-it just fit. I’m sorry… I’m so sorry…”

For a second, Jackie bends into his hands, his shoulders shaking, small hiccups escaping him. Marvin doesn’t respond, he doesn’t know how. He’s never seen Jackie like this before.

Eventually, Jackie speaks up again, “I’m just… all sorts of fucked up from this Marvin. From everything. I still can’t sleep cuz of Phantom. My muscles still ache and my bones still hurt…” He closes his eyes and sighs, “Everyone’s still hurting from this. And I… I’m just tired, Marvin! I’m so exhausted, how are you not? Is it so bad for me to want a goddamn break from it all? Can’t we just wait for things to go back to fucking normal?!”

Jackie finally meets his brother’s gaze again. Silver blue meeting dark.

“And If anyone should be fucked up over this… it should be you, Marvin. You should crying, screaming, angry! You got kidnapped, tortured, mind-controlled! If anyone has any right to be overly emotional it’s you! But… you’re not. You’re anything but? You’re so calm… i-it’s freaking me out man.” Jackie takes another step away from Marvin, holding his arms tight against his body. “You’ve… you’ve been freaking me out since you got back Marv. S-So much so I don’t think either of us should be crime-fighting right now…. I-i don’t trust myself enough to be on the scene when I’m like this.” The hero then swallows thickly, having difficulty looking at Marvin again, before he adds quietly, “ And… with everything that’s happened… I’m not sure how much I trust you right now either…”

Then he smiles at Marvin, though it definitely doesn’t reach his eyes. “The city isn’t gonna fall apart without us for a few days, Marv. It hasn’t fallen apart yet!” He tries to laugh, “We should… really take the chance to recover and get better, don’t you think?”

There’s tense silence between the boys once Jackie finishes and waits for Marvin to respond. The cat masked brother stares at Jackie, seemingly at a loss for words. Jackie can’t tell if it’s a trick of the street light or not but Marvin’s eyes seemed lighter like they did before this whole thing with Phantom. He looks conflicted. But after a while, the magician’s eyes darken as his gaze draws back up to Jackie’s.

“Jackie…” Marvin’s voice almost sounds close to breaking for a second before it drops deeper, “you’re a fool.”

Marvin quickly breaches the distance between him and the hero and grabs Jackie by the front of his uniform. He snarls in his face, sharp canines bared and eyes electric with purple fire. Black smoke seems to escape from Marvin’s mouth as he hissed, “The glitch won’t give us days off.”

Jackie is then roughly pushed aside as Marvin moves past him. Jackie only sees his caped back for an instant before he’s gone in a burst of purple smoke.

The hero stands there for a brief pause before a long heavy sigh leaves his mouth. He reaches behind him, his fingers grasping for something in his backpack pocket. His bright blue mask is pulled out and he quickly ducks out of sight before slipping the stiff cloth onto his face. It attaches around his eyes and his once brunette hair sparks to bright neon green. He opens his eyes and they glow with silver-blue fire.

Jackieboy man leans up against the alley wall though and sighs, looking up at the night sky.

“You really can’t get me a break can you, Marv?” he laughs bitterly. Finally, the hero pushes himself off the wall, rolling out stiff muscles before he starts to pulls out some of his gadgets and his super suit to track his brother down. He just hoped the magician wouldn’t get into too much trouble before Jackie got to him.

Marvin zipped from rooftops to rooftop in clouds of dark purple smoke, almost indistinguishable from the night sky. His face was set in a furious scowl, his stomach burning with anger. Why didn’t Jackie get it? What happened to the hero he once knew?

He doesn’t believe in you. In your potential. Celine’s sinister voice echoes in his head. _…show the hero how mighty Marvin the Magnificent can be! Then you can find the power to down that little glitch problem of yours._

The cat masked magician growls to himself, biting on his nail through his glove. “How am I supposed to take him down without Jackie? If Jackie won’t fight…” Marvin stops on the edge of the rooftop and lights a purple flame in his palm, letting it dance on his fingertips as he muses to himself, “How can I show him that now, we have more than enough power to take him down for good? I need him… to trust me. I need him to believe in what I can do!”

But suddenly, not even two blocks over, the loud blare of alarm bells began to sound off. Marvin’s head whipped towards the noise as he extinguished his flame. He muttered a quick vision-enhancing spell and his eyes glowed as he looked in the distance. Two figures with bags full to bursting were rushing full speed away from a broken shop window. A third figure seemed to hold someone in their arms with a weapon pointed at their head, a hostage? Marvin’s lips twisted in a grin.

“Oh. Perfect.”

Jackie sprinted down allies and vaulted over rooftops with his super jump, panting heavily. God, he was out of practice again. But, he had to find Marvin. He had a terrible feeling in his gut that only grew worse the longer it took to find his brother. He pulls out the tracker clipped onto his utility belt only for the blip that is supposed to be Marvin’s to glitch and spaz purple before disappearing. Jackie grunts in frustration and wacks the device a few times before giving up and dumping it in his backpack.

“So much for that…” He mutters before looking out over the city landscape of Brighton, “C’mon Marv… where are you?”

He prepares another super jump, bending his legs before loud alarm bells ring behind him. He startles back and nearly falls off the ledge he’s on before turning around. Where, where? There! His enhanced hearing could pick it up about 5 blocks to the west. That’s close to the shopping district.

Jackie rolls his eyes to himself, “The city just can’t stay quiet when I need it to can it?” He sighs. Then he stiffens, eyes widening. If there was a crime happening, then-

“Marvin!”

The red-clad hero makes it to the shopping district in record time, despite sweating buckets. His heart was beating hard in his chest as he sprints down the street, trying to find evidence of the crime, of where his brother could be. As he sprints, he passes by a broken storefront, with employees being questioned by police. One employee perks up when they see him and shouts out, “Jackieboy Man! They went that way!” Before pointing farther down the street. Jackie nods and gives the citizen and thumbs up before dashing even faster down that way. 

He doesn’t make it that much farther down the street before something starts to feel off. The air…feels wrong. It feels electric, like when you get too close to an exposed wire. An involuntary shiver runs down Jackie’s spine as he starts to cautiously jog down the street, now on full alert. That’s when he started to hear screaming. The hero jolted, ready to run again only to almost slam straight into another sprinting figure. Jackie quickly caught them and saw it was a young teenage boy, crying and terrified.

The hero knelt down and held the boy by the shoulders, “Hey hey, what’s wrong? What happened?”

“”J-Jackieboy Man?” The frightened boy stammered, before looking behind his shoulder and trying to push past Jackie, “W-We gotta get out of here! H-He’s crazy! He’s crazy!”

“Woah Woah,” Jackie tried to reason with the boy, holding him back, “Just tell me what happened fast okay?”

“Those thugs! They took me! Took me away to steal the stuff from the store! B-But then he swooped down and saved me! B-But when the guys tried to fight him back-” The boy’s eyes grew wide and he held himself, shaking, “There were these weird lights, and the guy was screaming! Then he just fell, he was all dark- I-I think he killed him! Oh god, they’re dead- H-He’s gonna kill me too-”

The masked hero felt like he already knew the answer as he swallowed the huge lump in his throat but he asked anyway, “What did he look like? The guy with the weird lights.”

“H-He had a white cat mask.”

Jackie’s stomach dropped and his blood ran cold. He quickly pushed the panicked boy farther down the street. “Go, kid, there’s the police that way that will keep you safe. Go! Run!” The teen didn’t waste any time as he ran and Jackie quickly turned around and sprinted faster down the street the opposite way.

Another haunting scream echoed down an alley right as Jackie neared it and the hero quickly rounded the corner. He couldn’t believe his eyes at the sight.

Two thugs lay on the ground, faces frozen in what looked like half screams. Their eyes were glossy white, almost as if they were blind. The rest of their bodies looked like they were covered in dark purple dust like all the light had been sucked out of them. Wisps of black smoke leaked off their bodies and seemed to be sucked towards the rising figures behind them.

The third thug was being held in the air tight by telekinesis, grasping at his throat and kicking wildly as he screamed at the grinning magician below him.

“You killed them you son of bitch! You fucking killed them! Y-You’re a sick freak! I thought you good guys didn’t do that!” Marvin cocked his head at that before giggling and tightening his hold on the thief’s throat. The pickpocket coughed harshly and clawed at the air before he choked out, “I-I’ll give you the money and the goods back! J-Just let me go!”

Marvin hummed to himself, eyeing the discarded bags of treasures before he turned pure purple eyes back to his captive. “I’m not sure you’ve really earned that mercy. You endangered a small boy. Haven’t you ever heard of ‘an eye for an eye’?” His face split into an eerie Cheshire cat-like grin as the thug’s eyes widened in terror. The cat masked magician’s eyes darkened and the whole of them turned dark purple as he began to chant in that dark language that made Jackie’s skin crawl. The skin around the thief’s neck started to burn dark purple like his friend’s, spreading like diseased veins and he screamed, his eyes started to gloss over into a milky white…

“STOP!” Jackie screamed, pitching forward in a panic. Marvin’s head immediately whipped around, dropping the thug to the ground with a sickening crack. Jackie’s heart pounded in his ears as he looked his brother dead in the eyes like he was staring down a completely different person.

Marvin grinned from ear to ear and thrust his arms out like he was back on stage. “Jackie! So nice of you to join us!” Black smoke curled out from the corners of his mouth as he spoke, and from his rolled-up sleeves, Jackie could definitely see them now. Glowing purple veins, crawling up Marvin’s arms from underneath his gloves towards his inner arms and then some. Freaky lavender light ringed his normally blue eyes as he grinned down at the stammering hero.

“What… what the hell are you doing Marvin?”

Marvin blinked but his smile didn’t falter, “Why what needed to be done, Jackieboy! The city needs to be saved if you’re taking a break, so I’m saving it in you stea-”

“This isn’t saving it!” Jackie yelled back, throwing his arms out to the bodies of the thugs next to him. The air around them felt frightening cold, “You don’t save anyone by killing people Marvin! You know this!”

The magician’s face changed at this, falling to a more serious one as his eyes flashed even darker. He stepped forward, over the bodies like they were nothing.

“Jackie,” He said, his voice suddenly sounding… strange. Stronger. Distorted. “This is what we could do to the glitch. I have the power we need to end him. Once and for all. Don’t you want that?”

The hooded hero took a shaky step back, shaking his head like he was in a daze. “W-What? N-No! I-I I don’t want to kill anyone! I’m not that kind of hero!” Jackie spat back.

Marvin giggled and pushed forward, his voice slithering through the air, “Don’t lie to me Jackie. Don’t tell me you’ve never wanted him dead. For what he did to me.” Marvin touched his mask over the right eye, leaving behind dark purple stains on the white mask. “Or to Henrik. Or to Jack. We can make him pay for all of that!” The air suddenly felt foggy, it was hard to think… or breathe. Jackie kept feeling himself being drawn to Marvin’s glowing eyes in the fog. The more he talked…the more he started to feel that anger resurface in his head.

But the hero shook it off and held his head, feeling dizzy all of sudden. Why was it so hard to think past this? “R-Revenge is wrong, Marvin! W-We have to be better… than him……” Jackie clenched his teeth together, the anger getting stronger but it felt forced like it was not his own.

The magician giggled darkly as he strode forward, “Oh but Jackie… It would feel so good…don’t you think? Finally… we could win!”

Jackie’s mind was spiraling, he couldn’t think straight. The alley was twisting and turning before him and he felt like he was gonna throw up. His frustration, his anger made him feel hot like he could pass out. He couldn’t lie though… he wanted to win. He wanted to beat Anti so badly. He wanted to punish him for all he had done to innocents, to Jack’s fans. What he had done to his brothers….

The hero had to hold his head tight, to block out Marvin’s voice in his head. This… This wasn’t the way to do it…What Marvin was doing would never be the right way!

But, just trying to think that had Jackie’s knees shaking and his throat tight, hardly able to breathe. Why was it so hard to fight Marvin’s words? No…Unless…

Jackie flashed furious silver-blue eyes up at his brother, “Marv….are..are you trying to influence me?!”

Marvin’s eyes darkened, flashing purple again before he flashed a too sharp grin. He stepped predatorily forward as Jackie scrambled back. His fingers began to reveal swirls of dark purple and lavender magic. He chuckled slightly unhinged.

“You always were too smart for your own good,” Marvin sneered, “Our fearless leader…If I get you to trust me… The others will follow with little resistance. And the glitch will be gone for good!” He raised his hands, letting the magic combine into one massive spiral, the force growing stronger. He laughed even wilder, “No one has to know the thought was not your own!”

The hypnotic pull of the magic was almost too strong to fight, the light caught in Jackie’s eyes. But, the hero managed to duck his head away and turn quickly sprinting back down the street.

Jackie wanted to say it was strategy that made him run, some big plan he had brewing in his head, but no. It was fear. Overwhelming fear that drives his legs to bunch up and flee, leaping onto the buildings behind him as his heart hammered wildly in his chest.

It wasn’t long until Jackie heard Marvin’s laughter follow after him. It only made him jump faster from rooftop to rooftop, almost in a blind panic. Marvin’s magic was too strong right now. Whatever freaky new stuff he learned was too effective. If Jackie got caught in it again…

“Jackie, Jackie, Jackie…” The red-suited hero skidded to a halt and looked around wildly for the magician. Marvin’s voice cut through the open air around him. It was tinny, echoey like it was on a- There, tucked in the corner of this rooftop was an abandoned radio where Marvin’s voice now slithered from.

“If only the others knew what a coward you were… would they put such faith in you?”

Doubt and loathing started to creep into Jackie’s mind, his limbs feeling numb.

“N-No…” He breathed, shakily stepping backward.

“Perhaps it’s time you stepped down Jackie… You seem so tired….” Marvin’s voice echoed almost gently. Jackie’s shoulders relaxed almost. He had told Marvin earlier he was tired…“I’ll watch over our dear sweet brothers… They need a strong leader, right?”

Jackie almost nodded but quickly shook his head and snapped out of it, “What-No!” He shouted. But he hadn’t realized how close to the edge of the roof he was. His foot slipped and with a strangled yell he slipped off the side.

Luckily, the hero’s reflexes were fast and he grabbed a window sill to slow his descent. But he couldn’t hold for too long and he tumbled to the ground. He groaned as he got up and quickly assessed the damage. Just some tough bruises… no broken bones thankfully.

Jackie looked up to see where he has fallen only to feel his stomach drop. A storefront filled with TVs was to his right and not too far away on his left a game store filled with screens. The hero quickly tried to get to his aching feet but soon the screens buzzed with purple static as Marvin’s voice purred with slight amusement. The static on the screens started to shift into swirls of power and Jackie quickly shut his eyes and tried to cover his ears.

“You really are quite the piece of work, Jackie.” Marvin mused, “You don’t want to do the smart thing and help save your brothers. Yet you won’t step down and let a better leader save them from the monster who wants to torture them….”

Suddenly the light from the screen grew brighter, more intense. Jackie could feel the warmth on his skin and behind his eyelids. The air burned with energy like the street could set fire at any minute.

Marvin’s voice suddenly grew furious as the light flashed, “YOU MUST CHOOSE JACKIE! Either You or I must kill the glitch! It’s the only way to save them!” His voice boomed across the street, shaking the glass of the windows and making Jackie’s knees buckle. The lights of the screens flickered and sputtered before dying. The sound of sparking electronics hit Jackie’s ears as he crumbled to his knees. His own mind felt shaken by the impact.

“N-No!” He sobbed, feeling tears build up underneath his lashes. He gripped his head tight, curled up on himself. Marvin was wrong… he was wrong… he was…

Jackie was having a harder time convincing himself of that, Marvin’s poison words reaching into and digging claws into Jackie’s mind. But, Jackie prided himself on two things. His morals as a hero, and his ability to protect his family.

Eventually, Jackie rose back on shaky feet, face set in determination. He gritted his teeth, pushing Marvin’s corruption out of his brain as best he could.

“I… I don’t have to choose anything- I’m… I’m a hero! I don’t hurt people, I protect, I save people! Jack didn’t make me to kill! Nothing you say will change that Marvin!”

There’s a long disturbing bout of silence as Jackie’s words echo down the street and into the open night air. The hero swallows, bracing himself for Marvin’s next flashy attack.

But, instead, he’s surprised to hear Marvin’s voice start to come from his back. It’s muffled so Jackie has to take off his bag and ruffle through it to find the source. His…tracker?

“Jack…” Marvin spits, his voice spits with malice. “What has Jack done for you and me lately? Nothing! He’s let that glitch run free- And he’s given more spotlight to every other ego more than us! …isn’t that sad Jackie? Didn’t he once say, you were one of his favorites?”

Jackie swallowed thickly. He… he didn’t want to admit he had felt a little… left out lately. But, he had faith in Jack. He knew his creator knew what he was doing.

But Marvin continued, sounding like he was grinning with uncontained excitement. “Just think Jackie… if we get rid of Anti- the fan-favorite. The one pulling the strings. We can be on top! Not just you and me- but all of us! We wouldn’t be pushed aside anymore. Jack wouldn’t forget us anymore- all we have to do is-”

Jackie listened closely as Marvin rambled. He.. He had to admit that did sound nice. To have some content for themselves… But no-If that’s not what Jack had planned-!

Wait- As Jackie almost felt pulled under, movement on the tracker caught his attention. The once nonexistent dot of Marvin’s, cloaked by his magic, now blipped on the screen. It glitched between green and purple as the screen zoomed in on its location. The triangle representing Jackie came into view and… just to his right behind him popped up-!

Jackie didn’t even waste a second. He dropped the tracker and built up power in his fist, his eyes and fist glowing with silver-blue fire. He caught the surprise in the magician’s eyes, seeing the swirling magic of his ambush right before Jackie’s fist connected with Marvin’s face. His brother collapsed on the pavement like a sack of bricks, out cold. Jackie panted heavily, watching as blood leaked out Marvin’s most likely broken nose.

The air around them finally settled, relieving tension as Jackie sighed and slumped against a nearby wall. He caught his breath and tried not to stare at Marvin’s passed out body cold on the street. With the unnatural glowing veins that invaded his skin and the burned purple marks on his mask. If he didn’t look..maybe he could pretend his brother was alright.

Jackie bit down hard on his lip to bite back a sob. Heroes don’t cry…not now. He still had a job to do. He quickly pulled out his phone from his belt and dialed an all too familiar number.

“Hey Hen… s-something’s up with Marv- we need to get everyone together. Got a spare bed?”


	7. Desperation

Henrik ushered Jackie into a private room and Jackie was quick to deposit his comatose brother on the bed. But, without wasting a beat he turns to Schneep and grabs his shoulders, his face displaying pure desperation.

“Hen- I need something to restrain him, now!”

Schneep shoved off his brother with a look, brushing off his coat. “Jackie, what are you talking about? You must explain all these things before demanding things of me! What exactly is going on?”

“I promise I will explain,” Jackie pants, but he grabs his brother’s arm again with a tight grip, “But not until he’s restrained. I don’t know how long he’ll be out but he can’t get back out there until we figure this shit out. Just trust me!”

Henrik still looks skeptical and looks over to the knocked out magician, as if gauging how dangerous he really was. Jackie wanted to scream.

“Henrik!!”

The doctor covered his ears against Jackie’s shrill voice and finally threw up his hands. “Fine, fine!” He traveled up to Marvin’s bed and reached underneath, producing two lengths of straps. He wrapped the belts around Marvin’s middle and his legs before looking back to the hero and raising an eyebrow.

“Better?”

Jackie visibly slumped and nodded his head, finally allowing himself to flop into one of the nearby chairs and push his mask up on top of his head. “Y-Yes.. thank you doc.”

Dr. Schneep watched him deflate with a worried expression. Soon, he’s kneeling by Jackie’s side and rubbing his arm. “Jackie… what the hell happened?”

Jackie opens his mouth to start explaining when the door bursts open, revealing Chase rushing in. Jameson follows behind with a confused expression.

“What’s happening?! Is Marvin okay??” Chase asks with hysteria. “The news- there was all sort of shit on the news! Saying- there was a supervillain on the loose? Are you both alright??”

Jackie raised his hand to stop Chase’s rant, then throws a thumb in Marvin’s direction.

“…He’s the supervillain.”

The brothers’ eyes all widen in shock.

“What…?”

The red-clad hero raises tired eyes and sighs, curling in on himself.

“…It was Marvin. He… I don’t know what happened. I should have told you all earlier… but I wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt- that maybe this was just trauma from being kidnapped by Anti… but he kept getting… worse. He’s been holed up in his room- and using freaky purple magic. Chanting and reclusive and…”

The hero closed his eyes tight and shudders.

“One night… I saw… I saw him holding what looked like a Jack doll… and- he was saying… d-disturbing things. Talking about being… the one pulling the strings.”

Now it’s Schneep’s turn to shiver, his eyes showing fear at those words. He looks back to Marvin with a tight worried frown.

“What happened tonight?” Chase asks just barely above a whisper.

Jackie sighs heavily and holds his arms as if it will protect him.

“He was… angry that I wanted to take a break from crime-fighting. It’s been too much for me. But, he was insistent that we both needed to get back out there. He met me at work- and we had a huge argument. I… told him the truth. About how he’s scaring me- how I’m scared to get back out there so soon. How everything still hurt- and I was confused about how he was doing so well. He… was so determined though. Kept mentioning Anti.”

The superhero drew in on himself again, eyes starting to widen- like reliving the story could cause him to panic. The other boys looked at each other in concern- Jackie never shows fear like this… he’s the bravest one of the bunch.

“Marvin ran off- and a burglary happened downtown. When I got there… I ran into a panicking boy. He was so terrified and I thought it was because the robbers took him as a hostage to get away. But, he was scared of someone else.. someone in a cat mask.

Then… I found him in an alley- and…and-!”

He starts to hyperventilate and Chase comes over and holds his hand, kneeling down by him.

“Breathe, Jackie… you’re not in danger right now.”

Jackie shuts his eyes and laughs breathily, eyeing the passed out body on the bed behind him.

“I’m…not so sure about that.”

He tries to breathe slower before starting up again.

“When I found him… he had… killed them… He killed the robbers!!” Jackie finds himself shouting. The others all gasp- well Chase and Schneep. Jamie… was sitting on the hospital bed next to Marvin and was strangely quiet. More so than usual. He seemed almost indifferent. Or, not present at all. But, he does flinch at Jackie’s shout.

“What do you mean… killed??” Schneep asked in a panicked voice.

“That…doesn’t sound like Marvin…” Chase whispers, holding a hand to his chest.

Jackie nods solemnly. “I know… I know- but… I know what I saw. The… the criminals… they were drained of all color… yet tinted dark purple. They had purple veins crawling up every inch of skin.. and their eyes were milky white. And… black smoke was coming out of their mouths… but they weren’t breathing.

“How do you know that was Marvin though- maybe it was someone else and Marvin-!” Chase tries to interrupt but Jackie holds up a hand, looking haunted.

“I saw him do it…” Jackie whispers, shaking. “I saw him drain the life out of the last robber… then drop him to the ground like it was nothing…. it was him.”

There’s a heavy silence in the room. A pressure from the weight of what Marvin did.

Eventually, Chase tries to speak, voice choked and confused as he shakily lowers himself to the floor to sit. “I… don’t understand. Why… why would Marvin do this? He- He just got kidnapped! When… when did he change so suddenly…? Is it Anti?”

Jackie sighs, messing with his hair. He looks a mess still, after fighting Marvin. “That’s what we need to figure out…” He pushes his bangs back out of his face, looking at the ceiling. The poor hero seems so exhausted. He knits his eyebrows together as he tries to think. “He… started to seem strange… right before Jamie told me he was quitting hero work…”

“He what??” Schneep asks, eyes wide. Chase looks shocked as well. Jackie blinks in confusion.

“You didn’t know?”

“No…” Chase mumbles, “I haven’t seen you all since we got Marvin back. I heard you all were heading back to work and… that was it.”

Henrik nods, “And I, of course, am always very busy here…”

Jackie still looks unsettled and he looks back to look at the quiet ego, “J- why didn’t you tell them…?”

Jameson, however, isn’t looking at any of them. As if he hadn’t heard any of their conversation at all. He’s staring at the floor, at nothing.

There seems to be a purple tint in his eyes.

Jackie stiffens then lunges to grab Jamie’s arm. The teal haired ego jerks and looks at Jackie with wide eyes, trying to scramble away.

“Jackie, what are you doing??” Schneep stammers.

Jackie’s face darkens and the gentleman shivers, curling in on himself. “Marvin, did something to you, didn’t he?”

“I don’t know what you mean,” Jameson signs shakily.

“You haven’t reacted at all to the news… aren’t you worried at all?” Jackie asks. Jameson looks away, dipping his head. His irises reflect purple again as he signs. “I… figured it was hero stuff. It’s not my business.”

“This is about Marvin, J! Not hero work!”

Jameson signs faster, a desperate look in his eyes. “I can’t be bothered with this- I can’t listen to hero work- I can’t-“

“And why can’t you?!” Jackie shouts, feeling anger burning in his stomach.

“… because I’m weak. I have no real power. I’m nothing.”

The room goes quiet at Jameson’s confession. Jackie can see it though- there’s a blankness in his expression, a reflection of purple light. He doesn’t really believe those things. He was made to believe it.

Jackie’s eyes flare with power as he grabs Jamie’s shoulder and turns him towards him. The gentleman hardly reacts now. Jackie fishes out his phone and flips the camera towards JJ and shoves it in his face.

“Bullshit- you don’t really think that J… Marvin made you believe that- look at your eyes.”

Jameson stares at the mobile device with a dull expression. But- slowly, the light comes back to his eyes and the purple flickers. His eyebrows raise and he shakes slightly. Unable to move his hands, one of his speech slides shakily appears by his face.

“What…? I… don’t understand-“ He grips at his head, wincing slightly. “My.. head hurts-“

Jackie sits down next to Jamie now, even as the other ego flinches and almost scoots away. But, now he hesitates, looking confused.

“J… when you last talked to Marvin.. what do you remember?” Jackie asks softly.

Jameson closes his eyes, trying to recall. Slowly, his hands start to work again so he can sign.

“He… found me with my hero’s uniform… he- helped me realize that.. heroing was too much for me.”

“He didn’t help you do shit!” Jackie snarls, slamming a fist on the bed. Everyone jumps.

“Jackie, dude- maybe you should calm-“ Chase warns.

“No!” Jackie shouts, going to grab Jameson by the shoulders. His expression is caught in between something desperate and scared.

“Jameson remember… remember how happy you were joining me- remember how confident you felt. You have a talent for something more than working at a clothing store- than just doing your puppet shows. You have a compassion for helping people- you wanted to help save the city like me and Marvin did… please- please tell me you remember that…”

Jameson looks confused, lost, terrified. “I… I-I…”

Chase suddenly scrambles to his feet, back knocking against their bed. “Uh- g-guys??”

Behind them- a purple light is filling Marvin’s now opening eyes. The pressure in the room turns suffocating as dangerous dark energy sparks and crackles from the trapped magician’s body. Jackie wastes no time- he grabs Chase, then grabs Schneep’s coat to throw him back before throwing his body over Jameson.

The room explodes with terrifying power.

As the dust clears, the thrown egos are covered in teal light- Jameson’s hand is thrust out and pulsing with power despite his scared expression. They are all surrounded by a shield, embossed with a pocket watch symbol on its surface.

And before them, broke out of his bonds, is Marvin.

He looks odd and terrifying. Power has his hair and cape whipping around in an invisible wind. His eyes are empty sockets filled with pulsing violet energy. His skin.. it’s littered with purple glowing veins. Black and purple electricity spark off him as he takes a step forward. His footsteps seem to char the tiles under him black.

“Where is he-“ Marvin starts to snarl, “Where’s Jack?” His eyes snap to the trembling doctor in the shield.

“M-Marvin… b-buddy…” Jackie tries to stammer. Marvin’s head snaps to the hero, and with a thrust of his arm, purple fire rockets towards the hero. It bursts through the shield like it was sugar glass and Jackie is thrown against the wall with terrifying force. He wheezes brokenly before crumbling to the ground in a heap.

“Don’t you dare speak to me, you traitor!!” Marvin growls dangerously.

Chase crawls to the hero’s side and cradles the passed out hero, tears lingering in his eyes. “J-Jackie!”

Marvin again looks towards Schneep, starting to walk towards him. The doctor scrambles back, heart threatening to beat out of his chest.

“I’m not a patient man, Henrik…” The walls of the room are being burned by the dark power whipping against them. “Where. Is. Jack?!” Marvin commands.

Schneep can hardly breathe. How is this his brother? “M-Marvin, please, l-let’s talk…? You do not need to-“

Marvin bursts more with chaotic magic as he bares his teeth ferally. He lifts up a purple coated hand and Henrik is lifted into the air, hands caught around his neck as he chokes. His legs flail wildly as he tries to get away. Marvin’s hand clenches and Schneep sobs, his throat closing up more.

“Why must I repeat myself? Tell me where Jack is Schneep- do not impede my plight for justice.”

Schneep’s face is now red, almost purple as tears run down his cheeks.

“I… d-do not… w-want you… to… h-hurt him-!” Schneep squeaks breathlessly.

Chase shakily gets to his feet, pulling out his green and orange gun and aiming. The bullets… he changes them to lethal ones with a flash of orange. His hands are shaking.

“Marv… l-let him go- you’re hurting him! Let him go, dude!!”

Marvin cocks his head towards Chase, and with another flick of his head, the gun goes flying out of Chase’s hands.

“You don’t scare me, Brody.” Marvin hums, turning back to Schneep. His magic flares stronger and Schneep gasps wetly. His eyes are now filling with the same purple light as Marvin’s. And he starts to scream bloody murder.

Marvin’s lips curl into a terrifying smile. He closes in on Schneep and brings the man close to his face with his magic. “If you won’t say Hen… then I’ll just take the information from your mind-!”

Schneep sobs and screams, his head flickering with images and words too fast for him to comprehend, like flipping through television channels. He can’t fight- He can’t do anything against the magician!

Jameson finally seems to wake up, watching Marvin’s deeds with new eyes. He furrows his brows, courage once lost to him now flooding back through his veins. He tries to think, then pulls out his pocket watch.

With a flash of teal eyes- the air in the room stills. Henrik freezes mid-scream, Chase mid-run. Yet… it doesn’t affect the corrupted magician. He looks confused then looks to Jameson with darkening eyes.

“Jameson Jackson…” He hisses. He lets go of Schneep, who still floats in his power outside the paused time bubble. He strides towards the gentleman, power flickering dangerously at his fingertips. “I thought I took care of you already…”

Jameson stands tall, his own magic flaring back.

“Marvin… you know this is wrong. I know you do. Please… remember yourself and come back to your family. Please, I’m begging you.”

Marvin’s expression seems unreadable but he does pause. His head tips to the side, his eyebrows slowly furrowing in thought. A blue light seems to flicker in his eyes- revealing his normal ones. But, it’s short-lived.

“Your bravery is wasted, Jackson.” Marvin whispers, “You can’t stop me, none of you can. And I’m going to burn the glitch out of our useless creator and end our suffering once and for all.”

Jameson flashes out his magic, teal knives now posed around Marvin’s head. Jameson’s hand shakes.

“Marvin, my friend- brother, please! Don’t make me do this- I don’t want to hurt you!”

Marvin pauses then grins wolfishly. “I knew you didn’t have the guts. Just a useless, pathetic mute-!”

Jameson’s eyes flare in anger and with a pulse of teal, all his knives dive to strike Marvin. The bubble keeping time from moving bursts and Marvin goes flying into one of the walls, a knife driven into his shoulder and pinning him there.

Schneep wheezes as the magic breaks and he falls heavily to the floor. Chase blinks in confusion. ‘What the- what just happened?”

Jameson looks scared of what he just did. But, soon his resolve strengthens and he walks towards Marvin, readying more magic weapons to strike him

“How powerless am I now, Marv?”

There’s silence from the bleeding magician. But then his shoulders shake and quiet giggles escape his lips. He grabs the magic knife and it cracks with purple veins before turning black and crumbling.

“Completely…” He laughs, flashing up normal eyes at Jamie but tinted that terrifying purple. “I got what I needed.”

With a snap, Marvin bursts into pure smoke and disappears.

Jameson’s magic bursts as his stomach drops and his blood runs cold. No- did he actually get Jack’s location from Schneep’s head after all? He quickly runs to wake all his brothers, helping them to their feet with urgency.

“Wake up- hurry! We’d must hurry!! Marvin is gonna try to kill Anti!”


	8. Challenging the Dark

The lights of the hospital room burst as purple magic crackled through them. The air was burning and tasted acidic. Yet, Marvin appeared, grinning triumphantly as he stood over the patient’s bed. The bed of the great, yet comatose, Jacksepticeye.

The YouTuber was hooked up to several machines now. A cannula was in his nose, hooked up to a ventilator next to him. An IV was stuck onto his hand. Other wires were stuck under his clothes and attached to various screens surrounding his bed. What looked like scientific/medical gibberish flashed by on the screens… probably Schneep’s own experimental equipment that he was testing… Marvin scoffed at the sight. Schneep tended to get in way over his head… overthink things- make them too complicated. Maybe that’s why he hadn’t…

Marvin shook his head and looked down again at his target. Jack was breathing peacefully. Without all the equipment… he could easily just be asleep. But Marvin knew the truth… he could feel the hot weight of Jack’s doll in his pocket. Feel the heaviness of his sin. Part of him… deep down- felt terrible.

But, that wasn’t why he was here.

The screens surrounding them made a horrible screeching sound and the images glitched. Marvin spun around at the sight and growled darkly, purple power flickering off him in dangerous waves.

“You…” He hissed, staring the glitches down. He swore he heard the demon’s haunting laughter echoing in his head- taunting him. More black magic burst into the air as Marvin felt his anger grow. He turned and thrust out a hand at his creator, dark purple and black magic bubbling up and sparking. Slowly, a cruel grin grew on the magician’s face.

“Sorry Jack,” Marvin practically sang. “But, I’m sure you wouldn’t mind sacrificing yourself to get rid of that demon glitch! So- this is for the greater good…”

The purple veins burning on Marvin’s skin flashed brighter as Jack’s body started to glow with lavender light. The magic started to sink into the comatose YouTuber… then his eyes sprung open- filled with the dark power and he began to scream.

As the other egos ran as fast as they could down the busy hospital halls-suddenly they all felt a horrible pang in their chests. It sent them all falling to their knees, some finding a chair or the wall to brace themselves on. It was hard to breathe- their bodies felt like they were filling with hot fire. Jackie heaved and looked down the hall with terrified eyes. “No- Marvin…!”

Schneep pushed himself up with difficulty before starting to run again, desperation giving him more speed. “J-Jack!”

The doctor bursts into the room first and wheezes as he tries to shout out, “Marvin! Please stop!!”

The others nearly crash into Schneep as they all clamor into the room. They all shout to the magician or cry for Jack. The Youtuber is screaming bloody murder- his pure purple eyes now glitching with green light.

“Marvin, please!” Jackie nearly sobs, “You’re going to kill him!”

Marvin laughs sinisterly, turning terrifying power-filled eyes on the other septics. “That’s the point!” He clenches his fist, causing Jack to scream even louder, his voice cracking from the pure strain on his vocal cords. “Why would I stop? I’m finally going to get rid of that glitch once and for all!”

“Y-You can’t do that, Marvin,” Henrik yells shrilly, “If you do that then-!”

He gets cut off by all the electronics in the room making a horrific glitching shriek- almost sounding like a pained wail. The monitors all fill with green and red glitches and pixels as the noise crescendos to an almost ear-splitting degree. Finally- everything seems to shut off as Jack begins to glitch and spasm wildly. Then, the glitches all combine and start to form a body— and Anti crashes to the hospital tile. The demon pants heavily, his entire body twitching with purple power and veins. But, it looks like his body is trying to dispel the toxic magic as the purple dims and fades before coming back brighter. It almost looks like he’s smoking and that his body is burned, bits of pixels flying off him and into the air. Anti turns up pitch-black eyes on the magician in front of him and growls ferally.

“Y̡o͢u̵̢ ̶f̷̧ų͟c͟͠k̶̴i͟͞n͟g͟ ̧iḑ̢i̷͜o͠t̵͜-̴͘!͏̨!̵͝ ̛͘A̴̡r̷̷e͟ ̸͟y̢҉o̵ư ̧i͜͠n̨̧s̶a̶n͡ȩ͘?” The croaks then coughs, sending more glitches and pixels fizzling off him. “Don’t you realize that if you kill me and Jack- you kill all of us??”

“… Is that true?” Jamie signs fearfully to Henrik, who nods grimly.

“Yes, we are all connected. If one goes down… we all go down.”

The demon glitch laughs madly, “That’s right- you useless puppets are all connected to his life source. Why do you think I haven’t killed him yet?”

Marvin regards Anti with an unreadable expression. Then, he powers up another charge and fires it at the prone glitch.

Anti yelps and quickly glitches out of the way. He clumsily hits one of the hospital walls, his eyes showing just a hint of fear.

“Y-You’re i̴̕n̵͜s̡͡a͏͢n̸͘e͜͡! Didn’t you hear me?!” Anti laughs unstably, body threatening to glitch apart. “You can’t kill me, kitten whiskers! If you do, you’ll kill your whole pitiful family! I-̡Į͢’̨͜m͘ ̨͜u̷͠n̶͢t̡ǫ̶ų̵c̶͘h̷a͝b͜l̨e͞!”

The magician doesn’t really seem to hear him or acknowledge his warnings. His hands spark up with almost pitch black magic, sparks of purple peeking through the dark mass. He bares his canines at the glitch, and from his mouth, black smoke seeps out. Every step he takes darkens his surroundings, spreading deep dark corruption around the room- like everything is being coated in shadows.

“I’m going to destroy you-“ Marvin whispers darkly. Anti, for the first time in his life, looks terrified as he tries to glitch back- tries to scoot away. His limbs keep glitching and becoming unstable, making him flail pitifully. “I’m going to wipe your existence off of this earth for EVERYTHING YOU’VE DONE!”

Marvin raises his hands, ready to blast Anti into oblivion.

But in an instant, his vision is filled with the sight of his brothers all rushing to stand in front of the glitch, protecting him.

“W-What..?” Anti blinks in confusion, his voice hardly above a whisper.

Marvin shakes, his hands trembling from keeping his toxic power back. “What are you doing?” He snarls, “Get out of my way!”

“We can’t let you do this Marvin!” Chase shouts, tears threatening to leak out of his eyes.

Jackie swallows before glaring at his best friend, “You’re not thinking rationally! You’re letting your rage blind you- and whatever that freaky magic is… it’s corrupting you!”

“We will not let you destroy us all!” Schneep whimpers, stepping more in front of the glitch, and closer to Jack.

The magician blinks in confusion, blue flickering in his eyes. Then, they flare even brighter purple, his sclera starting to branch out with black.

“You’re defending a monster! Don’t you get that? I’m trying to save us!”

“No, you’re not!” Jameson’s speech slide flares bright, shoving itself in Marvin’s face and making his back up. Jameson stalks forward, looking enraged. “You’re only thinking of yourself! Your want for revenge isn’t going to save anyone! Right now, we’re the ones saving our family!”

Marvin backs up even more, looking conflicted. He looks back and forth between all his brothers’ faces. He stares down at the burning magic eating at his hands, blue flickering more wildly in his eyes. For a second, he looks close to breaking down. But then, his eyes shift to pure black and he howls in rage. He throws down his hands and the room explodes into darkness.

All the others cough, feeling around blindly. It’s completely pitch black, though they can hear the sparking of broken equipment further into the room. Schneep whines in worry, trying to feel his way towards Jack’s bed, muttering over and over, “No… no Jack! Jack, my friend, I’m coming…!”

Then, the emergency lights of the hospital finally flicker back on…

And in the shrill harsh white light, the others all feel their stomach drop at the sight.

Where Marvin just was is only a blackened explosion mark, smoking with black corrupted smoke. Purple sparks zip in the air, making the atmosphere taste like burnt metal.

Looking over to the hospital bed- it’s not there. All the fancy equipment and monitors are gone… the bed is gone.

And, so is Jack.


	9. Setting the Stage

“DAMNIT!!” Jackie screams as he slams his fist into the hospital wall, denting the plaster.

Schneep opened his mouth to scold Jackie but he didn’t have the energy. He was curled up where Jack just was- in between what’s left of his destroyed and smoking machines. The doctor stared at the black coating the floor with a distant expression. Chase went to sit by him and gently rubbed his shoulder. Schneep sighed then laid his head against Chase’s shoulder and the younger brother wrapped half an arm around the doctor. Chase was freaking out too, sure. But, He tended to be the emotional support his brothers needed. So, he comforted who he could.

The two of them watched Jackie pace back and forth across the floor, throwing up his hands as his eyes flared dangerously with energy. He was limping though, and blood was caked in his hair from where he was thrown earlier. Chase looked around to see Jamie leaning up against the wall, his hat hung over his eyes and his hands wrapped tight around his arms.

Chase rubbed Schneep’s arm one more time before getting up and walking over to the hero. Jackie didn’t even notice him, he was muttering to himself. Yanking at his hair and digging nails into his bruised and injured arms. It was hard for Chase to watch.

“Jackie…” Chase tried to call out. Jackie still didn’t hear.

“Jackie-!” He tried again. Still, only muttering.

Finally, the vlogger couldn’t take it and he steps in line with Jackie and goes to hold his shoulders. “Jackie! C’mon man-”

Jackie jolts then looks at Chase with wide eyes. Then, he tries to shove out of his grip. He was losing it- “Let me go Chase- I- I gotta…!”

“Please Jackie, you’re injured- and you gotta take a breather….” Chase tries to coax him. Jackie shakes his head.

“I-I I can’t- I can’t…” Jackie whispers, looking away from Chase. Chase frowns and tries to look into his eyes. “Jackie… you gotta take a break. We’ll figure this out, okay? But you gotta-”

“I can’t Chase!” Jackie suddenly yells, blue silver flaring in his eyes. Chase feels anger flare in his chest too and he shouts back, “Why can’t you?!”

“BECAUSE THIS IS ALL MY FAULT!!” Jackie screams, his voice so loud the walls around them start to crack. The hero pulls away from Chase in the father’s shock and starts to pull on his hair again. He starts to hyperventilate, tears trying to escape his eyes as he gasps.

“I-i! I’m the reason Marvin got kidnapped by Anti in the first place! I was so angry- I couldn’t see that he needed me! What kind of brother does that?! And- And! When he started acting weird I… I felt so bad about everything. I wanted to figure it out on my own! But then Jays… Marvin did something to Jays and- and he was using that weird magic and. I did nothing! I could have stopped this! I could have saved Jack- I could have helped Marvin! But I’m such a bad fucking hero now, I couldn’t save anyone!” He starts to raise his voice again, his out-of-control power making the walls shake and leak debris. Chase watched this with worried eyes, then slowly makes his way towards the trembling hero. He leans down and places a gentle hand on Jackie’s face, and Jackie sucks in air and looks at Chase with teary eyes. He looks so lost, it breaks Chase’s heart.

Chase wipes at his brother’s tears, “Jackie…first of all, breathe for me, okay?” Jackie looks confused at first, but slowly he tries to focus on breathing, bringing up a hand to shakily hold into Chase’s arm.

Chase gently leads the hero to go sit down in one of the few chairs that haven’t been destroyed. Then, he kneels in front of him and places a hand on his knee.

“Jackie…” He starts, “I know it’s hard to not blame yourself when stuff like this happens. God knows I feel awful that I couldn’t do anything about this either… But, you gotta ask yourself this: Did you kidnap Marvin?”

“…no..

“Did you make him use this magic? Did you make him kill those people? Did you make him take Jack?”

Jackie swallows then shakes his head.

Chase’s face softens as he grips a bit tighter onto Jackie’s knee. “Then…you gotta let that go, dude… Lamenting over what happened isn’t going to change anything. Believe me, I know. The only thing that should matter now is not blaming yourself- but working towards fixing all this. You aren’t a terrible hero, bro… but if you want more of a chance to prove yourself. This is it. But now, you don’t have to do it alone… we’ll be here to help you. We’ll save Jack… and hopefully Marvin too.”

The hero is quiet for a second, letting the words sink in. Then, he takes a steadying breath before giving Chase a weak smile.

“…thanks, Chase…you’re right.”

The father grins then gets up, ruffling Jackie’s hair and knocking his shoulder with a friendly fist bump. “Hey don’t mention it, brah. Now, c’mon, we got shit to do, right?”

Jackie chuckles, rubbing his arm as he gets up. He studies the room, taking in the state of the others. His stomach churns with uncertainty. They’ll need time to recover… but who knew what Marvin was up to now? They’ll just have to take it a step at a time and hope that-

Wait a second- ”where’s the glitch? Where’s anti?!” Jackie suddenly cries, looking around the room frantically. Henrik and Chase exchange a frightened look before they too start searching.

The boys all look around wildly before realizing… Jameson is standing very still near the back wall. He lifts up his head, a crooked smile hidden behind his mustache as his arms and shoulders buzz with glitches. He lifts up his eyes to reveal two black pits.

“Oh I’m sorry- did you miss me?” Jameson mouths- but a voice is heard. Sounding- tinny and electronic. Jameson’s phone buzzes with pixels and green light shines from his pocket.

Jackie crosses his arms and gives Jamie a withered look. “Cut that shit out, Anti. This isn’t the time for your spooky cryptic shit.”

Jameson almost pouts, his mustache flaring up. “Well, what am I supposed to do, hero? Your cat freak took my host after frying me! If I don’t possess something then I could fade-! Dumbass-“

Henrik backs away from the glitch, shivers racking his body. “C-could you not just use Jameson’s or another one of our phones?”

Anti opens up his mouth like he’s gonna snap at Henrik and the doctor flinches back. Then, he looks contemplative, wiggling Jameson’s mustache back and forth.

“…who knew you had a brain under all that hair, doc-“ The glitch mumbles. Schneep looks up to his hair and pats it down with a confused and bewildered expression. Jamie closes his eyes. Glitches fly off of him in a human-like shape, like a shadow rising off of his body. Then they quickly dive into Jameson’s phone and it buzzes with Anti’s energy before going back to normal- though it does spark and twitch occasionally.

Jameson opens his eyes to reveal they’re blue once again. But, once he’s awake he starts to feel faint and he sways on his feet. Chase hurriedly catches him before he falls, patting his back. “I gotcha, buddy.”

The gentleman blinks up at Chase in confusion, using a speech slide since his fingers feel shaky. “Quite sorry, chap… did I fall asleep?”

“More like Anti’s a dumbass and tried to possess you when he could easily possess any electronics,” Jackie mumbles with annoyance.

Jameson’s phone buzzes and a static raked voice snarls, “I can hear you, spandex-“

“Good, ya fucking glitchy bastard-“ Jackie snarks back. Henrik gently lays a hand on Jackie‘s shoulder and rubs the bridge of his nose with a sigh. 

“Please Jackie- you both could do this all of the day- we have to figure out how we are going to get Jack back… and what is happening to Marvin.”

The phone buzzes with unhinged giggles, then it fizzles again- right before Anti pops back out and sits cross-legged on the floor. He’s not completely solid- he looks like a hologram almost. He twitches and fizzles with static and glitches but he looks up to the others with a slightly twisted smile.

“Mmm kit kat’s finally fallen off the rocker, huh? Ain’t it a sight to see?” Anti grins, his eyes displaying madness. Jackie scowls then stomps over to Anti. He tries to grab the glitch by the shirt collar-

“You did something to him, didn’t you?!” The hero growls- but his hand just phases through Anti’s form and the glitch laughs madly.

“Mmm not so tough when ya can’t touch me huh?” Anti sneers. Then, he glitches around, finally going to lounge on one of the thrown beds. He inspects his nails with a bored expression.

“Did I do something to kitten whiskers? Mmmm that’s hard to say! I did make him put Jack to sleep~ then took his memories so he couldn’t use you all to come back and interfere with my plans.” Anti hums as he recalls then turns his black pitted eyes back to the others. “But- I didn’t give him that freaky purple magic. I don’t have that kinda power. So- don’t assume every evil thing that happens is cuz of me, cardinal. Though, I am flattered.”

Jackie bristles, ready to charge towards Anti and punch the shit out of him. Chase and Jameson come over however and each holds one of his shoulders to dissuade him. Jackie snorts then looks at the ground, curling his hands into fists.

“Then… why did this happen?” He whispers to himself

The room grows quiet- except for Anti’s glitching. But, then, Jameson’s head shoots up like a cartoon character with a lightbulb over his head. He eagerly tugs on Jackie’s jacket before rapidly signing to him. “Wait- Anti isn’t the only one who has manipulated Marvin lately…

…what if the answer lies with Phantom?”

——–

Marvin wandered around the recording room, pacing and running fingers through his hair. God, could he have picked a worse place to hide? What was he thinking? Jack’s recording room??

Luckily his girlfriend had decided to stay elsewhere since Jack had been asleep. But, it feels like only a matter of time before his brothers find him… try to stop him…

“Don’t they get it?” Marvin growls as he paces, “I’m trying to save them! I’m using all this new magic to help them, protect them! Be goddamn useful for once!”

He snorts and glares at Jack with blaring green eyes, “Cuz god knows YOU won’t do anything!” He shouts at the comatose body, the machines taken from the hospital beeping softly as it keeps the YouTuber breathing.

Marvin feels frustrated tears building up in his eyes as he continues to cry out at his creator, “Even if you weren’t asleep- where were you when we needed you, Jack?! Where were you when Phantom found me? Where were you when I needed someone huh?? Not even my own brothers wanted to be around me but- i... I always thought…” The wetness leaks out of his eyes, burning with purple light as he tries not to break down. He grips at his hair again- when had it gotten so long?

“Why did I expect anything different? You never wanted me! You never planned for me as well as you did the others- I… I was a mistake you just had to work around… Why even bother to name that useless magician huh?! He’ll never amount to anything!” Marvin started to laugh unhingedly to himself, hugging his stomach while the other hand gripped his hair. Once his fit is over, he becomes scarily stoic, looking back down at his creator with blazing purple eyes. He stands taller over the bed and snarls, gripping the rails with purple-tinted claws.

“Well- just look at me now, Jack. The useless magician is making his own path now! And soon… none of us will need you- or the parasite you let live in your head."

He lifts away from the rails to narrow his eyes at Jack, watching his chest just barely rise and fall. For a second- his eyes flicker blue and he looks almost- sad. Then the fire comes back and he hisses, “You kept us all in the dark for your little games and stories… a big strong creator like you can stand being asleep until I’m done with you-!”

He moves away from the YouTuber now, starting to pace again as he rubs his chin with one hand and plays with his hair in the other. God- he really needs a haircut-

“I have to be careful… and do this right- I can’t let the others die… but as long as that- glitch! Is out there… none of us are safe… there has to be something I can do to put him in his place! Get him out of the way- powerless… defenseless! Let him know what it feels like…”

As Marvin is walking- he passes by a mirror hanging near the studio door. What he sees sends a jolt of electricity down his spine.

They have brown hair, blazing green eyes, and black sclera.

Without thinking, Marvin yells and sends a blast of magic at the wall. The mirror splinters into pieces with an audible crack! The lights and computers in the room flickered with green and purple magic, crackling like metal stuck in a microwave. Marvin heaves, feeling his heart go a thousand miles per hour. He kept his hand out and powered, ready to blast the Glitch into pieces.

“C-Come out you coward!” The magician stammered, feeling his magic buzz feebly at his hands. He’s still drained from his trip here with Jack and all of his equipment. But, the Glitch doesn't have to know that.

As he creeps closer to the mirror- his eyes widen.

There’s nothing else in the mirror. It’s only him. His hair has started growing super long- and brown, mixing with the green in his hair- and almost eating it all up. His mask where it rests on his forehead is almost completely darkened into a purple-black color, obscuring the white underneath. And- his eyes. Where there was once blue is now green with purple centered around his pupils- and his sclera has turned pitch black.

He scampers away from the mirror in shock, gripping at his chest and hair. He pulls a section from his face and looks at it in bewilderment. He watches as the green he’s touching slowly morphs into brown. Like Anti’s hair…

“I… I look like h-him-!” Marvin breathes in panic, feeling his stomach drop. Is.. what is he doing? Was his quest to keep his family safe from the glitch turning him into the same kind of monster? What if he’s been wrong this whole time??

There’s a soft laugh coming from the mirror that has Marvin stiffening. In slow motion, he turns back to the cracked surface- only to come face to face with a shadow. A shadow that has his face… and his previous blue eyes rimmed with purple.

The shadow grins at Marvin, cocking his head at the magician as a smooth mimic of his voice slithers out from the cracks. It seems like it’s reading his thoughts, everything he’s thought and is thinking- reading his very soul… as if it is him.

“Who cares if you’re becoming like him?” The dark being giggles into the air, yet his voice also echoes into Marvin’s mind. “Haven’t you ever heard you have to fight fire with fire?”

Marvin gapes at the mirror’s image- the gears in his head turning to figure out what the shadow could mean.

Fight fire with fire…? Maybe.. Using what Anti has used on him against him…

Then it hits him- and a twisted sinister grin spread across his lips, his eyes fully blaring purple. He has a plan now- something that Anti won't ever be able to recover from.

It was time to make a video… time to return to the stage.


End file.
